Echoes
by Zeragii
Summary: We all have things that scare us. But the truth is, as harmful to our souls as they may feel, they often make us stronger; and prepare us for the next adventure...
1. The Letter

**Hello! My name is Zeragii. ;) I've been inspired to write my own Mario Fanfiction, and so I thought I'd give it a try. :) Inspired by the game "Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon".**

 **I do not own anything related to the characters or worlds of the Mario franchise. I do not write for profit, but for my own enjoyment, and (hopefully) the enjoyment of others. ;) Thank you!**

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We all have things that scare us. Things that happened once, and that we braved the best we could; but, after it's done and over, we're very certain we'd never be able to do it again. That, if another situation like that should ever again find its way into our lives, we'd probably just faint dead away; give up the fight. We all have fears. Things that make us shake in our boots and want to crawl under the nearest bed. Hide. But that isn't how it usually works. It is often that the things we fear most, show up in our lives again and again. Like some cruel joke. But the truth is, as harmful to our souls as they may feel, they often make us stronger; and prepare us for the next adventure...

* * *

Luigi studied the crinkly, worn letter in his hands as he walked behind his brother. He was shaking slightly, which was making the words jiggle around in his vision; making it hard to read them. Not that he _needed_ to read it. He already knew what it said. But, somehow, he thought that maybe, _just_ _maybe_ , if he studied the words carefully enough; hard enough, that the content might change, and they could go home. But that, of course, was nonsense. No matter how much Luigi wished and willed those words to fade, they continued to exist, bold and mocking on the page he held. With a shuddering sigh, Luigi lowered his hands to his sides, glancing forward at his shorter, but older brother, Mario.

Mario was walking confidently, like he always did. It gave one a sense of calm to see the way he charged ahead purposefully, never once flinching back from danger. At least, not in a way that anyone could tell. Mario, who was a number of years older than Luigi himself, had always been the more confident one. Not that he didn't get frightened. Everybody does. But Luigi often found himself wishing he could shield his fear as easily, and as effectively, as Mario could. The man dressed in a red shirt, and blue overalls; the hero that every world needs. That was Mario. And, though Luigi loved his brother, and admired him greatly; it didn't make his feeling of being second-best any less painful sometimes. But those thoughts were for another day. Or night, as that was the case.

The forest around them was dark, cold, and, in all possible definitions, unbelievably spooky. Just as Luigi remembered it. The ominous chill in the air of Evershade Valley was a permanent feature of the place, sending icy winds through the trees above them; causing dark, drifting leaves to shower down. It all gave the feeling of an oncoming storm; which wouldn't be surprising. Evershade Valley was always shrouded in either rain, or swirling, gray clouds. The sun never shone here, but that was due to the extensive amount of paranormal activity in the area. The ghosts' presence had changed the land; though no one could remember what it had been like before. It had been far too long ago since it had resembled anything remotely normal. But the spiritly inhabitants were friendly and harmless, usually; and the mansions of Evershade Valley were abandoned, normally. The only _living_ soul for miles was Professor Elvin Gadd.

And that was the purpose of Mario and Luigi's trip.

Luigi lifted the letter in his hands again. It was moderately dark, making the exact words rather hazy, but readable in the faint light that did exist. The letter had arrived the day before, in an envelope that had clearly been handled poorly. It had been crumbles and torn in various places, and not entirely sealed; as though someone had been in far too much of a hurry to bother to do it properly. The letter itself, luckily, had been intact, though the handwriting had been hurried and sloppy. Luigi went over the contents in his mind, the words now permanently burned in his memory.

 _Dear friends Mario and Luigi,_

 _I am in dire need of your help here in Evershade Valley. Something has gone terribly wrong. I can't explain now, but please hurry. Time is growing short._

 _\- Professor E. Gadd_

That had been it. Plain, short, and simply; but no less worrying. Professor Elvin Gadd, or E. Gadd, as he was better known by the brothers, was an accomplished inventor, among other things; as well as a dedicated observer of ghosts and paranormal activities. Mario and Luigi had worked beside him through two previous adventures. Or, more accurately, Luigi had. Mario, through both instances, had been...indisposed; trapped by King Boo in a painting in their enemy's clutches. While that may have been traumatic enough; being caged motionless inside a flat world where nothing truly existed; the road that Luigi had been forced to take to _save_ his brother had been no less agonizing. Maybe even more so. The younger brother had had no choice other than to face his deepest fears; struggling through one task to another with knees knocking and heart pounding. To that day, no one could truly figure out how Luigi had done it; without suffering a heart-attack. But the fact remained that he _had_ done it, proving to everyone of what he was capable of; most of all to himself.

But that didn't help him now. Of all the places he would love to go, Evershade Valley was the one furthest down on Luigi's list. Memories of his adventures there had haunted him for weeks, and he had no desire to welcome more nightmares into his already strained nights of restless sleep. Even a year after his adventure of reassembling the Dark Moon, he still shook whenever it was mentioned. Mario, though not always the most observant of people, had noticed and had done his best to avoid the subject. Until now.

When it came to missions and cries for help, Mario was as hard as stone; set in his task to help, no matter what. Elvin Gadd had specifically asked for them both. There was no way to weasel out of going. Mario had practically had to drag Luigi out the front door, and still he continually glanced behind him from time to time to reassure himself that Luigi hadn't turned back around. Though he knew his brother to contain an amazing store of hidden bravery, Mario knew his brother's fears could sometimes get the better of him. Which was something they couldn't deal with at the moment. They didn't have time.

Turning a glance over his shoulder, Mario sent Luigi an encouraging smile, which faded when he found his brother occupied with gazing down at the letter held tightly in his hands. He shook his head, slowing a bit to allow his taller brother to catch up. "Don't-a get to worked up, Luigi," he commented cheerfully. "I'm-a sure the professor will explain everything when-a we arrive."

Luigi nodded distractedly, still focused on the note. He didn't really want to have everything explained. He knew all he needed to. Creepy mansion; Evershade Valley; something terribly wrong. What more could he possibly need to know? That this adventure was sure to end up just as horrifying as all the others? He hoped not. For once, he'd just like to be invited anywhere just for a friendly chat, rather than to face some life-threatening peril. Giving a sigh, Luigi stuffed the letter into his pocket.

It wasn't long before the duo had reached the long, winding path that led up to the professor's mansion. Above it, as always, glowing with that calm and eerie purple light, the Dark Moon was held in its place by whatever invisible force thrived within it. Its presence was a comfort, in that it meant that whatever emergency the professor was having, it had nothing to do with ghosts going hostile and out of control. Small blessings.

"A-are you...Are you sure w-we-a have to do this?"

Mario sighed. "Yes. The professor said it was-a urgent." Taking hold of his brother's wrist and pulling him along, Mario and Luigi finally broke out of the cover of the forest.

A few straggling trees perched here in there, but for the most part the landscape had become flat and grassy. In the distance, looming over them like a great, dark monstrosity, stood the mansion. Its windows were all aglow with the warm, golden beams of lamplight; but somehow that wasn't any comfort to Luigi. He tried pulling back from his brother's grip slightly, giving up the moment Mario's hold refused to loosen. The older brother was down-right determined, and Luigi was not going to fight it any longer. It was too late anyway.

It took several more moments to cross the fields and reach the last stretch of the path leading to the home of the professor. It was lined with lanterns, their soft light doing very little to chase away the heavy fog that was gathering. A picket fence marked its way along, coming to a halt at a pair of white, ornately designed metal gates. They were closed, which wasn't so unusual. In fact, for a creepy haunted mansion, it looked quite normal. As though nothing in the least was wrong.

Luigi gulped. _But looks could be deceiving._

Mario let go of Luigi's wrist, leaning forward to inspect the gate. Reaching forward he gave the rusty structure a quick, strong nudge. The action caused them to swing open, inward and easily, breaking the silence with a long, audible creak. It was funny, but Luigi seemed to remember them opening on their own accord before; the last time he had been there. The grating sound of iron on iron caused him to flinch, startling Mario.

" _Momma mia_ , Luigi!" he exclaimed, taking in his brother's trembling form. "Will-a you calm down!"

Luigi muttered a shaky apology, trying to get himself together. As Mario moved forward to walk through, Luigi followed close behind. The entrance was just as it had been before. Ominous and lonely. At least this time he had Mario with him; that made things a little less terrifying. Luigi kept his eyes locked suspiciously on the iron gates as they passed through them, expecting them to slam shut once they had entered. But they didn't. In fact, they hung there, completely lifeless, swinging and creaking as they shifted slightly in the breeze. Mario noticed his brother's line of gaze and sent him a questioning one of his own.

"I-it moved on its-a own," Luigi explained, almost defensively. "The l-last time I-a was here."

Mario raised an eyebrow, giving the gates his own, far less fearful version of a glance. "Well...they're-a not moving now." He gave Luigi an encouraging smile. "Come on, Weegie. It'll be-a fine. You'll see." He then turned and started his way through the courtyard.

Luigi, after hesitating, continued to follow; rubbing his hands together in front of him nervously and looking all around at the scenery that surrounded them. Though he was still terribly frightened, Mario's optimism often wore off on the people around him, and Luigi was no exception. Despite his fear, he put one foot in front of the other; following in his brother's footsteps.

The courtyard was perfectly quiet. A few telltale drops of rainwater dripped down, attributing to the far darker clouds that had rolled in. That was the only audible sound; raindrops hitting against the grass, leaves, flowers, and a small fountain to their left. That, and the sound of Mario's heavy footsteps stomping across the ground, boots grinding into the wet, gritty soil and pebbles. Luigi's far lighter and softer footsteps mirroring his own.

The two brothers made their way up a small case of wooden steps leading to the front porch of the mansion. The boards were wet and slippery with years of moist weather and gloom. A hint of a green color was evidence of moss, or possibly some other kind of grime. The porch itself was equally saturated, creaking with age beneath both their boots. All that occupied the space was a large urn-like object and an old rocking chair. Essentially, exactly the way it had been since the last time they had been there, especially from Luigi's point of view.

Mario didn't hesitate; walking right up to the double, oaken doors, he gave the woodwork a series of quick, confident knocks. The resounding echo of the taps ringing out in the chamber behind it, it gave the whole event a feeling of solemn foreboding. Luigi stood next to his brother, fidgeting nervously, still glancing in every direction possible. They waited like that for several moments, feet squishing into the thick, soaking-wet mat beneath them, before Mario gave the door another try. This time louder. The echo was far more pronounced this time, traveling through the mansion as if to affirm its totally unoccupied state.

Mario frowned. "That's-a strange." He stepped back, placing a hand on his chin in thought. After a moment he exchanged a glance with his brother. Luigi nodded, knowing what Mario's unasked question might be. Mario returned the gesture before stepping back a few steps and then moving forward; throwing his weight against one side of the door. Luigi startled, and Mario cried out in surprise, when the door opened very easily and Mario found himself tumbling right through and landing in the entrance room with a grunt.

"M-Mario? A-are-a you okey dokey?" Luigi's voice echoed around Mario as though his brother surrounded him on all sides.

"Yeah, Luigi; I'm-a fine. Come on-a in."

A flash of lightening and a loud crash of thunder persuaded Luigi to do just that. With a squeak of terror, the green-clad plumber dashed inside, slamming the door shut behind him. Mario lifted himself to his feet, sending his brother a rather teasing grin, but was otherwise silent about his jittery relative's frayed nerves. Dusting himself off, Mario glanced about the well furbished room with curiosity. The wooden tiling of the floor was quite unique, as was the thick, rectangular rug that rested in its center. All around the walls hung pictures of various things, mostly portraits of people long since gone from this world. It gave everything a sense of ancient domain; like a museum, as did the two sets of medieval armor guarding the entrance to yet another double door in front of them. There were also two, much smaller doors to the side; one on the left and one on the right.

"E. Gadd?" Mario's voice sounded uncommonly loud in the silence of the house.

They waited a moment, and than Luigi added his own shaky call. " _P-professore?_ "

Silence. Utter and complete.

Mario took off his red cap, giving his head a bewildered scratch. "That's-a funny. He-a knew we were coming...Why isn't he-a here?"

"M-maybe somethings-a w-wrong?"

Mario huffed. "Well, that's-a obvious. The note-a, remember?" He tapped Luigi's side pocket, where the note lay stashed. Stepping forward, Mario leaned to peer through the keyhole of the double doors. Through it, he could hardly see, other than when the lightening flashed. Then he was able to make out, briefly, a long hallway lined with more suits of silver armor. The metal caught the light, glinting it all around. The flash was quickly followed by another crash of thunder. Mario instinctively felt Luigi move closer to him. Stepping back, the older brother began to look more concerned. "E. Gadd would have-a met us at-a the door. If he was-a able too..." His face became grave as he took another, slower look around the entrance room. "Somethings not-a right."

Despite his shivers of fear, Luigi managed to send his brother an exasperated glance. Hadn't he predicted this all along?But Mario didn't give him a chance to say anything.

"I don't think that he's-a here in the mansion..." Turning, he gave Luigi a serious look. "Is there anywhere else that the professor may have gone-a to?"

Luigi thought hard for a moment or two; going through the unpleasant memories of his last visit. That adventure had all begun with the Professor dragging him through his television screen, with the use of E. Gadd's Pixelator; a device that could teleport persons and objects over a distance to re-materialize someplace else. At the time, the professor had been in hiding, trying to stay clear of the hostile ghosts that, during that period, had run amuck in Evershade Valley, due to the destruction of the Dark Moon. If the professor had been forced into hiding again, than, perhaps, he had returned to his previous, impenetrable hideout. "H-He might be in-a the bunker."

"The bunker?"

" _Sí_." Luigi paused. "I...I have-a never walked to it, since the _prefessore_ always used the Pixelator to bring-a me there. But I think it is close-a by."

Mario nodded, already heading back through the doors leading outside.

Thunder and lightening filled the air; causing a sort of electrical excitement in the atmosphere. Storms were frequent in the valley, though rarely severe. The wind had picked up, but not dreadfully so. It was raining harder now, and it wasn't long before the two brothers were soaked to the skin. The air wasn't frigid, thankfully, but a definite chill existed. Though, what else would one expect from a paranormally active residence.

Luigi shivered, with cold now, rather than fear. He felt better with his back to the mansion; walking away from it. The professor's bunker was a much more appealing place, since, during his last adventure, Luigi had always felt safe within its walls. No ghosts had been able to slip in; nothing frightening had jumped out at him, as long as he had been in the bunker with E. Gadd. And, though the professor certainly wasn't the most sane company, in Luigi's mind, it beat being around hostile ghosts any day.

Mario consciously slowed his pace. He had a habit of charging ahead, full speed; a characteristic he had always born. But, as humorous as Luigi's nervous state could be, Mario was slightly worried for his brother sometimes. Luigi's past experiences in Evershade Valley weren't pleasant ones. Of course, then again, neither were his. But Mario had always been strong; a fast healer, both in mind and body. But Luigi...Well, Luigi was a bit more sensitive. While Mario tended to live by his actions, Luigi tended to live by his emotions. Not that Mario didn't have any, but it was easier for him to just march ever forward; always moving ahead. Luigi was a thinker; a ponderer. And, as of the moment, Mario could only guess what his brother was thinking.

He didn't want to coddle him; protect Luigi from whatever had happened before, but he didn't want to abandon him either. It was like walking a tightrope, suspended over a great chasm. Move too far one way and you would fall, move too far the other way and suffer the same result. And so Mario tried to balance himself somewhere in between caring and indifferent; never truly knowing whether he was succeeding or not.

"It's-a still there."

Luigi's soft voice jolted Mario from his thoughts. The red plumber looked at his brother questioningly as they walked, before following Luigi's gaze to the sky.

Far above them, but not above the ominous clouds, glowed the ever present, purple glow of the Dark Moon. Suspended in space, it appeared very unnatural, floating there the way it did. And what exactly it was, even Professor E. Gadd wasn't sure. That was why the man had taken up residence in this dark and gloomy place; to study the Moon's power to pacify ghosts. A dangerous occupation, if ever one existed. One could never anticipate what discovery the professor might make that could possibly attract the attention of an old foe; or even a new one. E. Gadd was a genius; no one could deny that. His inventions and observations had helped improve life for many people, even reaching as far as the Mushroom Kingdom. And, as unpredictable as he could be, E. Gadd never sent out a call for help unless it was well warrented. The fact that he had neglected to meet up with them now was worrying; especially after sending such a serious letter.

It took a little while, but they finally found the professor's bunker. It was an odd, mechanical, dome-shaped structure. The professor had built it himself, some time ago. It took even longer to local the door, which was so well hidden it was almost impossible to find. Mario, who had never been to the bunker himself, thought it strange that Luigi didn't know where to find the entrance, but Luigi reminded him that he had never just walked in. His constant trips to the bunker had been with the use of the Pixelator; so he had never actually even seen the door. But, knowing the professor, he had known one had to exist, in case of as emergency. Luigi proved to be right.

First, giving a firm knock, Mario listened for any telltale signs of life within the structure. But, just like the mansion, there was no answer. Reaching forward, the eldest brother tried turning the odd-shaped handle, but couldn't get it to budge. "It's-a locked." That having been established, Mario threw his weight against the door, like he had done back at the mansion. Only this time, instead of opening, it clanked and rattled in protest; as though informing him that such efforts would be futile. "We'll have to-a try together."

Luigi nodded meekly, positioning himself beside his brother.

" _Uno_... _Due_... _Tre_!"

At Mario's signal, the two men launched themselves forward and into the metal plating of the door. It thumped loudly under the pressure of their combined weight, but still only moved a little. The boys backed up and went at it again; pressing their shoulders against the cold, hard surface. Their feet were slipping in the wet, muddied earth, and they might have given the exercise up, if not for the loud, creaking groan the door gave on their third try. The metal, obviously a far less sturdy compound than the rest of the structure, was beginning to bow inward.

"Just a little more!" Mario encouraged. "All-a we have to do is break-a the lock!"

Stepping back and then surging forward one last time, Mario and Luigi gave the door one more solid ram with their bodies. Luigi gave a light gasp, having hit harder than he had intended. There was an audible _snap_ , like something being broken in half, and the door, dented and a little askew, slowly swung open as the Mario brothers quickly jumped back. The metal door slammed to the left, hanging beside the gaping hole it now accompanied; darkness the only thing within.

Luigi took several steps backward, his nervousness returning, but Mario edged closer, trying to get his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting both within and without the dome-shaped building. "Professor Gadd?! Hello?!"

Silence was the only thing he received.

" _Per_ _carità!*_ " he muttered in frustration. Placing a hand on either side of the frame, he stepped up and into the darkness.

Luigi began to do the same, but a bang, followed by what sounded like a yelp and a curse, resounded from within the gaping hope, stopped him. Luigi paused, trembling because he was afraid to go inside, but far more afraid of staying outside; alone. He waited a moment as the sound of things being knocked over ensued, before Mario's voice rang out loud and clear.

"Hold on, bro...I'm-a looking for a light-a-switch! There's all kinds of things-a in here, but it's too dark to tell-a what they are!" There was a few more clumsy fumbles, and the clatter of something heavy falling onto the floor, before there was a _click_ , and the two brothers found themselves blinking in the sudden light.

" _Mamma_ _mia!_ " Mario's mouth hung slack with shock, and his surprise was well founded. Luigi climbed in through the door to join his sibling, feeling that same sense of shock hit his own mind as he too took in the bunker's surroundings.

The place was in shambles. Papers littered the floor, as did a number of hard-covered volumes; their pages crumbled and torn. It was obvious that they had fallen from the bookshelf on their right, which had partially leaned forward, before it had come to rest against other, less-recognizable objects. On the left of the floor, water had spilled over a large portion of the documents, leaking slowly from what appeared to be a knocked over water cooler. On the wall, opposite the Mario brothers, countless screens and monitors, for the professor's various experiments and observations, had been smashed; their surfaces spider-webbed with cracks and breaks. Not all of them, but certainly most of them. Besides a few sparking wires, and a few white moths fluttering around the overhead light, the bunker was utterly void of any moving thing.

E. Gadd was nowhere in sight.

Mario's shoulders slumped in obvious disappointment. This was not what they had expected to find. All that work getting in, and for what? A ransacked room, and even more unanswered questions. "Maybe he left-a us a note," he suggested, and immediately started forward, making his way around the debris. Luigi joined him.

Most of the professor's belongings were unsalvageable; too ripped or saturated to be of any good. It was kind of sad, all of E. Gadd's work strewn about in such a careless way. It was easy to see that something had happened. Elvin Gadd would never have done all this on purpose; to his own life's work. This had to have been done by something else. And, as eccentric as the professor was, he still knew how to use his mind to find an alternative option. Somehow, he had sent Mario and Luigi that letter. If he had been in the bunker, he was sure to have left a clue or direction...something. Anything.

The two brothers split up, Mario taking the right side half, and Luigi the left. The green-clad plumber nearly slipped in the ever growing puddle of cooler water. He set the tank upright, stopping the flow trickling out and onto the floor. Not that it really mattered; there hadn't been much liquid left in it anyway. Luigi tried to search the soaked pile of parchments, many of which had stuck together in clumps of puffing, white fiber. Typed lettering, smudged and distorted beyond comprehension, created black streaks in patterns across the papers, giving them a distinctly slimy look. Luigi attempted to pick one up, but it flopped and fell apart in his hands, too moist to hold together any longer. The younger Mario brother sighed, carefully trying to step around the mess; about ready to give up the search. If the professor had left anything, it certainly wasn't of any use to them now. He started back toward Mario, guessing that if any hope of finding a clue existed, it would be on the dry side of the bunker. However, just as he passed the edge of the puddle's watery reach, his eye was caught by something, only just slightly soaked around the margins. Hastily scribbled at the top was his and Mario's names, in dark, thick, sloppy writing. But it was not that which suddenly caused Luigi to freeze in place.

It was the dark, red stain that blotched one entire section of the note.

 _Blood_.

* * *

 ***Per carità! = Italian for "For goodness sake!"**

 **So there you have it. Chapter one. I hope it's not too slow, but I have of things to build up to. Some intense action next chapter, promise. ;)**


	2. Lurking in the Darkness

"M-Mario!"

The tone in Luigi's voice caught Mario's attention immediately. It wasn't that nervous stutter the red-plumber knew so well; this was different. It was a breathless cry, like someone had knocked all the air out of Luigi's lungs. Clambering over the wreckage, Mario quickly made it to his brother's side. "What is it?" He noticed the paper in Luigi's hand, knowing that it must be a note from the professor; but Luigi was griping it so tightly, it was a wonder it hadn't been torn in two. And that was still a possibility. "Luigi, what _is_ it?"

"Th-th-this!" Shoving the note at Mario, Luigi relieved himself of the bloodied paper. Some of it had gotten onto his hands, staining the tips of his fingers red. It sent an involuntary shiver down his spine, making him want to wipe the color off on his pants; but knew that wouldn't help either. While his brother read the note, Luigi bent down and trailed his hands through the puddled water on the floor, watching the blood swirl off of his fingers before it disappeared; dissolved into the clear liquid.

Mario frowned at the hurried lettering of their clue, also taking note of the red stain that covered the bottom, left-hand corner of the page. Slowly, and with difficulty, the elder brother began to make out the sloppy handwriting. "Mario...Luigi...My experiment...terribly wrong." Mario squinted as he continued. "Need help...attack...gone to...mansion...be caref-" He could read no further, as the lettering had been lost under the stain of blood and water. But it had been enough. It was obvious that what they were up against was dangerous; and was something the professor had brought on himself through experimentation. Great. Just what they needed.

"It sounds like he's-a telling us he's in-a the mansion," Mario stated, shifting his eyes back over the note.

"B-but...we just came-a from there," Luigi pointed out. He didn't want to go back to the mansion. "It was e-empty...remember?"

"We only checked the front of-a it. It's-a got a lot more-a rooms than the one-a we were in."

True. Unfortunately.

Luigi gave a defeated nod. Already he could feel the trembles of fear welling within him once more, and he felt a small flash of anger mix with it. He hated how he always shrunk back in terror at every little thing; but he couldn't seem to help it. After months of recovery, his nightmares of this place had been finally beginning to fade in the younger Mario brother's mind. It had been rough; Mario didn't even know how rough. Luigi had never told him. But now, just when he had begun to believe he might finally be over it, they had to come back to Evershade Valley. Luigi's eyes shifted wearily to the bloodstain on the page that Mario still held. His last visit had been frightening, yes. Traumatizing, yes. But there had been no physical injuries involved. Just whose blood was that?...The professor's? Or something else's? Whichever it was, it left Luigi feeling just a little sick. In fact...he felt kind of dizzy...

Mario carefully tore the bloodied part of the note off from the rest of it, letting the stained paper flutter to the floor. "We should-a go back." Folding the remaining portion of the clue, he stuffed it into his pocket. "Come on, bro; let's-a go check."

Luigi gave a groggy nod, shakily stumbling after his brother. What was wrong with him? He couldn't seem walk straight, and the room kept tilting from side to side. Or, at least, it felt like it was. The vision turned slightly dim, gray appearing along the edges of his sight. _Not good!_ Halting abruptly, he instinctively steadied himself against the bunker's wall as the room felt as though it had dropped out from under him. For a moment, the only thing he could hear was the fast thumping of his own heart in his ears. What was wrong?...After a moment, the dizziness subsided. Luigi slowly became aware that someone was shaking his shoulder and repeatedly calling his name. Opening his eyes -when had he closed them?- Luigi found that it was Mario.

The elder brother was very concerned. He had just been about to exit the bunker, when he had heard a soft thump. Normally, he wouldn't have noticed it; but, with the eerie silence that seemed to curse the place, the noise seemed far louder than normal, catching his attention. He had turned, half expecting to find Luigi sprawled on the floor; having tripped over one of the countless objects littering the floor. What he had found was his younger brother breathing heavily, leaning weakly against the wall. Luigi's eyes we squeezed shut, as if in pain, and his hands were clutching the bunker's inner surface with a force that made his knuckles white. Mario had rushed to him immediately, calling his name and asking what was wrong. But Luigi hadn't answered. Mario had reached forward, giving his brother's shoulder a light shake, but that didn't do anything either. Luigi didn't seem to see, feel, or hear him. And that was worrying. It took several more tries before he got a response. Luigi startled, eyes opening slowly as he swayed slightly. Mario steadied him with a hand, to keep the taller man from falling flat on his face.

"You-a OK, bro?" Mario asked hesitantly. Luigi looked very pale and disoriented, two things that Mario found not at all reassuring. But his brother seemed to be coming out of it, already beginning to straighten from his slumped stance back into his normal posture.

"...Yeah...Yeah, I'm all-a-right."

Mario frowned. He assisted Luigi to one of the piles of books, and sat him down, wanting to be absolutely certain of his brother's condition before they continued. Luigi took off his green cap, running a shaky hand through his hair, taking a deep breath to ease the last of the sickly feeling in his stomach. His vision had cleared, and the room wasn't shifting like it had been before, but he still felt a little unsteady.

Mario crouched in front of his brother, trying to assess the situation. "What just-a happened?" he demanded, his concern shining through his stern tone, making it clear that he was worried.

Luigi exhaled slowly, unsure of the answer himself. "I...I don't-a know..."

The older brother straightened, standing back to his feet. He glanced about the room, searching for anything that might lend a clue to Luigi's sudden change in health. There was that nothing stood out to the red-clad plumber. There was nothing unusual, or dangerous...Then his eyes rested on the shred of bloodied paper, his mind giving an inward sigh of relief. "Must-a be the blood," he suggested. Luigi didn't seem to be one with a strong stomach. Of course, that hardly seemed the likely cause of such a dramatic reaction. But Luigi seemed alright now; if not a little uneasy. "I'm-a sure you'll-a be fine."

Luigi gave a weak smile, accepting Mario's hand when his older brother offered to help him back to his unsteady feet. He didn't want to argue. Things were complicated enough. Sure, the blood had made him feel a little queasy. Maybe it was the cause of his little attack...but, for some reason, Luigi didn't think so. Something deep inside of him shook it's head, declaring loudly that that wasn't it. That it was something much more serious...more hazardous.

Mario returned the smile, which radiated a lot more confidence than Luigi's own did. In his mind, the problem had been solved. Luigi had just felt a little woozy after seeing the blood; nothing more. Giving his brother a comforting slap on the back, Mario moved forward to leave once again, but then turned right back around. He started digging around in the wreckage, coming up with a two flashlights. They seemed to be something the professor had in abundance. "Who knows what-a we may need out there," he explained, handing one of the flashlights to Luigi. "Grab anything-a you think might be useful."

"Okay..." Luigi shook the residual cobwebs from his mind as he too started to rummage about. Like before, all he found was a lot of papers and torn books. Mario was a little more successful. A small key, one that was sure to come in handy eventually, had been hidden in the corner. Mario slipped it into his pocket, up against the folded note. The only other thing of value the brothers found was a small remote. Luigi recognized it, though, it's purpose had long since faded from his memory. Mario decided to take it; handing it to Luigi for safe keeping, since his own pocket was now full. Then for the third time that day, they headed out of the bunker door.

"Let's head-a back to the mansion." With that, Mario started walking, though not as quickly as he normally did. He wanted to stay close to his brother, in case Luigi had another one of those odd episodes. He looked alright; he seemed his normal, jittery self, but Mario wasn't going to take the chance. They couldn't really afford any more problems or setbacks. Finding the professor was enough of a challenge as things were, without the added drama of anything else.

The brothers traipsed through the darkness, enter an area surrounded by a few, leafless trees. Their branches were black and crooked, looking uncommonly like the claws of a hidden creature of colossal size. It was still raining, the dirt having turned to thick, slushy mud. It was slippery, and it made the walk feel as if it were taking a lot longer. Their feet, at every step, sank deeply, having to be pulled out of the suction before the next step could be taken. It was tiring, and extremely messy. And still, through it all, the Dark Moon shone above them; casting its dim, purple glow. The forest was nearly silent. No birds, other than a few crows in the far distance, could be heard. Besides that there was nothing. Nothing but the pattering of rain against mud and the sloppy steps of the two brothers. Everything else was utterly still...At least, that they could see.

It was Luigi who felt it first. That hair-raising feeling; that paranoia one feels when one is being watched. He could practically feel the unseen eyes burning into; somehow radiating extreme anger and hatred. It was a disturbing thought, especially when, in Luigi's mind, there was no reason why the feeling should be present. As far as he could tell, they were the only ones for miles. Nothing but gloom, darkness, and mud stretched out in all directions; besides the bunker somewhere behind them, and the mansion somewhere in front of him. Luigi might have simply shrugged the notion off altogether...if he hadn't noticed his older brother.

Mario was walking stiffly, as though every ounce of his body were very tense. His eyes were slits, looking off to there left and right. He had slowed even more now, almost walking right at Luigi's side. His hand was held toward his younger brother, in a protective gesture, though he didn't make contact. Halting, he brought Luigi and himself to a sudden stop. It was then that Luigi realized that the uneasy feeling was not confined to just him. All at once, that same dizzy feeling from the bunker returned full-force, causing everything to swim in his vision violently. With a gasp of surprise, as well as discomfort, Luigi suddenly found himself kneeling in the mud, griping the ground beneath him as the world seemed to give a sudden twist.

"Luigi!" Mario bent over worriedly, planning to try and assist his brother out of the muck and mire; help lift him to his feet...But he never got to even try to do so.

Something hit him with all the force of a wild tiger. Mario flew backward several feet, landing on his back in the mud with an audible thump. Pain erupted in his spine at the impact, but he soon had other things to worry about. Something to his left gave a high-pitched screech; long and incredibly loud; somewhere between a scream and a roar. Before the older Mario brother even knew what was happening, he felt weigh down on him. It was extremely heavy, forcing all of the air out of Mario's lungs. The weight was almost unbearable, and Mario had the passing thought that his rib cage felt as though it were going to collapse. He had to get free! But the problem was, though he could feel whatever was attacking him, he couldn't see anything. As far as his eyes were concerned, the only thing pushing down on him was empty space. But the pain, caused by whatever it may be, was enough to convince the plumber that this 'empty space' was a serious danger to his health.

With a grunt, Mario managed to free one of his legs, bringing it back and kicking with all his strength against the invisible force that was slowly crushing him. The weight lifted as his attacker gave another screech, this time in agony, sounding as though it was stumbling back. Footprints, huge and clawed, were visible in the mud, though . Mario gave a gasp, filling his sore, empty lungs with the air it had so badly needed. He winced as he scrambled to his feet, hearing a nasty snarl to his right. Mario turned in the direction of the breathy hiss, still seeing nothing, but sensing that whatever it was was glaring hatefully back at him. Behind him, somewhere, he was vaguely aware that Luigi still knelt, trying to deal with his own disorientation. Mario knew his brother would be an easy target; fearing that, if the creature should go for Luigi, there would be little to nothing that he would be able to do. Luckily, at least in that respect, the creature was more interested in him at the moment. Another screech sounded, this time behind Mario. The red-clad plumber turned sharply, hoping to meet the attack head on, but he was too slow.

"Aah!"

Mario fell to his own knees, his yell of agony becoming a hiss of pain. His whole arm felt as though it were burning in fire, blood trickling along it under his torn sleeve. He griped his injured arm, trying to staunch the flow of red, and not succeeding in the least. He knew he couldn't stay like that, kneeling vulnerable in the mud. The creature, or whatever it was, would be on him any moment. But the pain was causing him to feel unsteady; his vision tinged with gray as the shock nearly took him to unconsciousness. But he fought it; somehow managing to half rise to his feet, his left arm hanging stiffly at his side, griped by his right hand. Snarling, and what sounded like the clacking of large, sharp teeth, rang out in front of him, and Mario knew he was in trouble. The thing was about to take another shot at him, and, as of the moment, Mario was too pain-ridden to fully comprehend it. The creature took steps toward him, the vibrations of its weight shaking the very earth beneath them. Mario snapped his eyes shut against the pain, trying to push himself up the rest of the way. But he knew he wouldn't make it. His body wasn't responding the way he wanted; too slow. He braced himself for the attack he knew would probably kill him.

Suddenly, a beam of light fairly exploded, illuminating both Mario and the area occupied by his attacker. A shrill screech of anger and pain escaped the invisible foe, as great earth-pounding steps scrambled away, its presence fading away into the distance. Mario, wincing through the haze of pain, looked up, squinting against the sudden brightness that was shining into his face. The beam of light shifted to the side, revealing that it was nothing more than a flashlight. A flashlight held in the shaking hands of his younger brother.

"L...Luigi...?"

The man in question was shivering uncontrollably, eyes wide and frightened. His breathing was nearly as erratic as Mario's own uneven gasps, sounding strained. The flashlight, still on, slipped from Luigi's grasp, falling to thump into the mud at his feet as the green-clad plumber, himself,stared in the direction the creature had vanished. Shock was evident in his expression; mixed with a sense of unspeakable horror.

Mario blinked the blur from his vision, chasing away the dizziness. The pain in his arm had settled into a pulsating throb, beating in time with his heart. With a shuddering sigh, he managed to push himself up to his feet with his uninjured arm. He swayed slightly, before he regained his balance.

"...Luigi..."

Mario moved forward to stand in front of his stunned brother. He shook his head at Luigi's state. The guy had just saved him from a terrible death, Mario was certain; and yet, here he was, frozen in fear. Or maybe it was just shock. Bending down, Mario reached for the discarded flashlight. It was a foolish thing to do; tensing a muscle in his back that had been bruised, pulling on the tendons in his aching arm.

"Unh!"

Mario very nearly fell forward, that gray tinge coming back into his vision for a second. When it cleared, he realized someone was holding him up. He lifted his eyes to meet the worried blue gaze of his brother's own. His older brother's cry of pain seemed to have snapped Luigi from his stupor, and he had quickly lurched forward to steady Mario and then pick up the flashlight himself. With concern emanating from those same eyes, Luigi used the flashlight's beam to inspect Mario's arm. Both of them winced when the area was illuminated.

A long, jagged tear now existed in the red sleeve of Mario's shirt. In fact, a good portion of the material was missing altogether, revealing the damaged flesh beneath it. A gash, red and bleeding, stretched from Mario's shoulder to just above his elbow. It was hard to tell just how deep it was in their limited supply of light, but, in all honesty, it looked terrible. It turned Luigi's stomach just to see it. Shifting his gaze to Mario's face, Luigi saw the raw agony his brother was experiencing. His face, even with the inadequate lighting, was very pale, and the younger brother didn't like the sound of his breathing. He tried to get Mario to sit down, despite the mud, but Mario shook his head with a pain-filled wheeze.

"No...we...we have to get back-a to the m-mansion..."

"Right a-after I-"

"No." Mario's voice hardened, but his face was filled with fear. _Fear_. "Luigi...it might...it might come-a back!"

Luigi startled visibly. That was something he hadn't considered. Looking fearfully into the direction the creature had gone, he then looked at Mario. Coming to a quick decision, Luigi took a hold of his own, green shirt sleeve. With a sudden jerk of his arm, he tore a large strip out of the material, exposing his bare arm.

"W-what are you-a doing?"

Luigi carefully took a gentle hold of Mario's injured limb, tucking the wrist under his arm. With his free hands he began winding the green fabric around his brother's wound. "Wrapping it."

"We can't afford to waste-a time, Luigi!"

"And you can't afford to loose anymore-a _blood_."

That silenced Mario; knowing that was true. His injury was bleeding quite badly. Blood loss would only make things worse. It took little less then a moment to do, and very soon he and Luigi were heading quickly toward the mansion; Luigi steadying his elder brother along the way. They had only gone about half the distance when an unwelcome tremor in the ground below their feet became all at once very noticeable.

Luigi's mind stumbled headlong into a panic. "It's-a coming back!"

"Run!"

Luigi needed no second bidding, pausing only long enough to grab the wrist of Mario's good arm. Mario gave a gasp of pain anyway, and Luigi felt a small pang of guilt at having to do so, but this was a matter of life and death. Running headlong into the darkness, flashlight their only source of normal light, they dodged trees and rocks; slipping on their feet in the muck and sludge of the earth spread out before them. The ground-shaking thuds of the creature had increased, both in speed and distance. It was after them! Racing, Mario and Luigi used every last ounce of energy they had, making for the mansion door, which was now in sight. Just a little further...

Luigi legs were a little longer than his brother's, giving him a slight edge; but he had a firm grip on Mario's wrist, pulling him along in a hectic, stumbling fashion. Flying through the open iron gates, through the courtyard, and up the slippery, wooden steps, Luigi reached for the door handle; jerking it open. He thanked his lucky stars it wasn't locked. With a pull, the younger brother yanked Mario forward, pushing him inside first, before turning to do so himself.

But to his horror, he suddenly felt a strong, crushing weight wrap around his ankle as he crossed the threshold. Luigi fell to the floor, half in and half out of the mansion; his fingers intertwining with the rug in an effort to try and fight the force that had grabbed him. His flashlight had fallen forward, skittering across the floor to come to rest somewhere indoors. Panic set in at once, and with a strength he didn't know he had, Luigi lifted his free lag and kicked out, just as Mario had done earlier. Whatever had him, growled, and the hold on his leg loosened a little. Another kick released him, as the creature roared and thundered a few steps back. Luigi took his chance; scrambling to his feet, he grabbed Mario's offered hand and the older brother yanked Luigi inside. Together, the brothers slammed the oaken doors shut with a resounding _bang_. They stumbled back away from it once it was closed, bracing themselves in the center of the entrance room. They expected the beast to barge through the door and resume its attack...

But it didn't.

Instead, a mighty, high-pitched screech broke the air outside of the mansion; so loud that even within the building it was necessary for the Mario brothers to hold their hands over their ears. Mario did so the best he could with his injured arm, but even then, it was a painful experience. A tremor in the chandelier above them, mixed with the fading, earth-pounding footfalls, announced that the creature was departing. Soon, all that was audible was Mario and Luigi's hard breathing. The beast was gone.

With shuddering sighs, Mario and Luigi sank to the floor in relief.

* * *

 **There we go, chapter two. Things are getting a little more complicated. ;) Thanks for reading and please review!**


	3. Stepping Back

The Mario brothers sat there on the floor for several moments, Mario cradling his injured arm, and Luigi pressing a hand to his pounding heart. Adrenaline, from their frantic run and brush with almost certain death, was leaving them quickly; draining away and causing shock and exhaustion to take its place. Even Mario was shaking; whether from fright or pain, it was hard to say. Both men sat on the floor, panting; gasping for breath after their unexpected use of exertion. One would have thought that, after years of missions and quests and rescues, that they would have been used to such things. But the fact was, as dangerous as their adventures could be sometimes, they had always been able to fight; to defend themselves. This new threat seemed to be invisible; they couldn't fight it. Sure, they had managed a few lucky kicks, but those had just been fortunate instances on their part. But they couldn't depend on fortune; not this time. Luck has a nasty habit of backing out when one needs it most.

Luigi tried to get his heartbeat under control. It was pounding away within his chest; so loud he could almost swear anyone within miles might be able to hear it. He had closed his eyes at some point, he realized. Almost reluctantly, Luigi slowly reopened them, glancing up, first at the door, and then over to his left. His heart sank when his gaze rested on Mario. His older brother looked terribly worn, still breathing heavily; arm held tightly in an effort to ease the pain he was so obviously feeling. He was pale, and shivering noticeably.

"M-Mario?"

"I'm-a...I'm-a alright, bro," Mario panted. His eyes closed in a long blink, fluttering open again a moment later. "I-I just-a need a mo...moment."

Luigi moved closer. Even _he_ could see that his brother needed a whole lot more than _that_. Carefully, and even though it made him feel sick, Luigi reached forward, gently pulling Mario's hand away from the wound. He unwrapped the green cloth, to get a better look. Luigi gave an involuntary hiss of sympathy, seeing the injury in the full light of the entrance room. It was still bleeding, and looked incredibly dirty. Mud had gotten into the wound, that much was certain. It was irritating it, probably making it more painful for Mario himself. Luigi wasn't positively sure, but he seemed to remember that open injuries, such as Mario had, should not be left vulnerable to things like dirt; it could get infected. It needed to be cleaned up, and soon. But the problem as to where to do so was quite evident. Mario didn't look like he would be able to move very far; not in his condition. A condition which Luigi still had no idea about; how serious it may be. But he did know the next step. That was to try and help his brother, and lower his discomfort the best he could.

Struggling to his feet, Luigi gently pulled Mario up with him. His older brother gave a muffled groan, but didn't resist the movement. A moment later, the two were standing, with Mario leaning into his sibling's hold slightly. Luigi waited until Mario seemed to settle and catch his breath.

"O-okay, bro," Luigi urged carefully, hoping that the tremor in his voice wasn't too noticeable. "We're going to-a go this-a way."

Mario blinked through the haze of pain, squinting. "W-where?"

"I remember that-a there was a stove around-a here somewhere. You need-a rest, warmth, and that wound needs-a to be cleaned."

Somehow Mario managed an almost teasing smile. "Bu-t...you...you don't-a know how...how to-a clean a scratch...like-a this..."

Luigi winced. That was truer than he wanted to admit right now. But that didn't change what needed to be done. He ignored the jibe, focusing instead on directing both his and Mario's steps in the direction of one of the small, single doors; the one to the right. Opening the door, and then propping it with his foot, he assisted Mario through, and into the adjourning interior. It was a room Luigi was quite familiar with, having spent much time within its four walls the last time he had been in this gloomy mansion. The faded, yellow, hexagonal-shaped tiling was slippery under their muddied feet, and it was only when Luigi managed to get them both onto the green, printed rub in the room's center that they were truly able to get their footing. The action really took a lot out of Mario, and he slumped even harder against his brother's grip.

The room was a lot barer than one might have expected it to be. A few tables, an overturned chair, and a bureau was just about all there was. Some coat racks lined the walls, along with a few pictures. Nothing more. Luigi gave a sigh, surprised at how well he was handling the situation at the moment. He was still terrified, true; but something about Mario's shivering form beside him moved that terror to the back of his mind. Mario came first. His fear would just have to wait in line.

Mario glanced wearily at the homier decor, sagging slightly in his brother's hold. Luigi carefully led him to the corner, where, just as he had recalled, sat an old, dusty heat stove. It was smoking slightly, indicating that it still functioned and had been in use recently. Setting Mario in a chair to the right of the stove, Luigi then had no trouble coaxing the flames back to full strength. Before long, the chilly atmosphere of the room was replaced by a spreading warmth that chased away some of the numbness from both their skin. Luigi turned his attention back to his brother's wound, finding it difficult not to wince at the sight of it. It really was quite filthy, and desperately needed to be cleaned. The younger Mario brother remembered a sink, located somewhere in the many rooms of the mansion, but he knew it would do little good for them. Mario was, at the moment, in no condition to go stomping around, room after room. Especially since Luigi wasn't completely sure where the sink, tub, or any other water source might be. Mario would never make it. And Luigi was _not_ going to leave him alone to go look.

An unexpected clap of thunder broke out simultaneously with a hissing flash of bright, blue lightening, causing both Luigi and Mario to startle. Rain, big drops by the sound of it, began to pound on the tiled roof above them. A few trickles found their way down through the rafters, causing leaks on the far side of the room, away from them. Glancing at the cascade of clear, fresh water making its way down the window pane, Luigi was all at once struck with an idea. Scooting Mario, chair and all, closer to the sill, the younger brother forcefully lifted the window; opening it. Mist, cold and wet, blew into his face from the outside, taking away the warmth he had already gained from the stove. Turning to Mario, he gently lifted his older brother's tattered sleeve; rolling it up until the entire wound was completely exposed.

Mario blinked up at him. "What are...what are you-a doing?" His voice contained a mixture of nervousness and curiosity.

"I'm-a going to try and use-a the rain to clean-a your arm." Without waiting to hear whether Mario concurred with that idea, Luigi gently extended his brother's arm out of the window and into the reach of the driving rain.

Mario flinched at once, letting out a small yelp, but he gritted his teeth and made sure his arm stayed where it was. The raindrops danced along the length of his limb, washing away the mud and grime, as well as a good amount of blood. The wound became far easier to see properly, appearing under the receding blanket of liquid red. It stung; that was to be expected, but it also felt good. The cool water calmed the fiery heat of the injury, making it far more bearable.

They stayed like that for a long while; until Luigi was absolutely certain that every grain of grit had been washed away. The cold water had managed to slow the bleeding as well, making the red flow far less and more sluggish. Helping Mario to settle back into the chair, Luigi closed the window and shifted his brother back over near the fire. He let the wound air dry a moment, while he inspected it.

It was a ragged tear, right through Mario's skin. It wasn't as deep as Luigi had first feared, but it wasn't as harmless as he might have hoped. It still seemed irritated and sore, though Mario's discomfort was definitely beginning to lessen. Once Luigi was sure he had done all he could, he carefully re-wrapped the wound with yet another strip of his green sleeve. Mario gave his brother a grateful look, but couldn't help adding in a quick observation.

"You're-a shirt is-a going to look as-a bad as my own, by the time-a we get out of here," he grinned; a sort of half smile, half grimace.

Luigi finished tying the cloth around Mario's arm before looking down at his bare arms. His sleeves looked nearly as tattered and dirty as Mario's own. It looked strange, and both he and Mario had lost their gloves somewhere along the way, leaving their hands bare as well. It felt odd; uncomfortable even. But, as of the moment, they had much more pressing matters to worry about other than the condition of their clothing. Mario was thinking very much the same thing.

"Alright." The elder brother sighed deeply, relieved that the pain had diminished to a dull throb in his arm. "We need-a to look at-a what has happened, and-a try to figure out what is-a happening." He closed his eyes for a moment, resisting the urge to run a hand over his injured limb. Luigi almost thought he had fallen asleep, but then the two, blue orbs opened once more. "Let's-a see the letter." Mario held out his hand, indicating Luigi's pocket.

Luigi shoved his hand down into the pocket of his overalls, coming up with the badly crinkled paper that had signaled the beginning of this whole nightmare. He tried to get some of the wrinkles out of it, but it proved in vain, and he handed it to his brother.

Mario took it and lay it on his lap. Reaching with his good arm into his own clothes, he withdrew the letter from the bunker, laying both side by side. He gazed at them steadily, scanning them for any possible clues; but was sadly disappointed. Both letters contained the same handwriting in the same, hurried manner. Both looked as though they had been inscribed on scrap paper; previously used for some other purpose. Elvin Gadd was missing, that was a fact that couldn't be denied. And both letters spoke of an experiment, and something going wrong. That, in and of itself, wasn't so unusual. The professor, genius though he may be, didn't always think ahead in dangerous situations. He didn't always think of the consequences of the actions he chose, and what they might produce. Usually, his 'slip ups' weren't to bad. When they were, he usually called on Mario and Luigi; more often Luigi. But this...this creature that they had encountered, was proving to be a challenge that even their combined force was struggling to survive.

"We know-a that something went-a wrong with his work." Mario rested his chin in his hand. "And now-a we know what-a went wrong. So the next-a step would be to find-a the professor." Sure, it sounded nice and simple when he put it like that. But there were still far too many unanswered questions. Too many variables. Too many problems. But the professor would be able to clear a lot of those things up, if they could just locate him. "He must-a be in this-a mansion, somewhere."

"H-how do you-a know," Luigi interjected nervously. The adrenaline that had coursed through his veins earlier was beginning to fade away, making room for his fears to settle back into their usual place. "H-how-a do you know he's-a not d-dead?"

Mario had thought of that, though he firmly chose not to believe that possibility. "If he was-a dead...we would have-a found a...a body. Or other clues as-a to prove-a that." He radiated a lot more confidence into that statement than he actually felt. He didn't want to consider that E. Gadd, their friend, might have met with a terrible and untimely end. But, even if it were possible, Mario knew he could never tell Luigi that. His younger brother was already terribly shaken. His memories of the mansion were riddled with fears; fears that had just been reinforced by whatever had attacked them outside. Which brought up another unpleasant factor.

What was that thing? It had felt _big_ , and _heavy_. The tear in his shirt and skin indicated that the creature had claws. Big ones. Bigger, and far sharper than Bowser's. Sharp an daggers. Mario was trying not to to dwell on how lucky he was that the beast hadn't caught him in the chest...or the throat. It would have been game over for him if that had happened. As it was, he wouldn't have made it without Luigi. Mario was really quite proud of him; the way he had taken charge. But that was Luigi for you. Any other time, he was scared stiff of his own shadow; but when push came to shove, and it really counted, Luigi always displayed a hidden strength that never ceased to amaze those who knew him.

Luigi himself was feeling anything but brave at the moment. Now that the immediate danger had passed, the four, gloomy walls of the mansion felt like they were beginning to close in around him. The horrors of his last two visits swam with the fears of their current one. It made him want nothing more than to turn and leave; get as far from Evershade Valley as physically possible. But that was out of the question. Elvin Gadd was in trouble, and they couldn't just abandon him. No matter what...No matter what they might have to face, whether it be creatures lurking in the night or ghosts lurking in the-

Luigi suddenly froze. He all at once realized something he hadn't before. "The g-ghosts..." he stuttered, "The _professore_ ghosts. I haven't-a seen any since-a we arrived." He glanced around the room, as though he expected one to show itself at his mention. "Where are-a they?" In all rights, they should have met up with at least one by now. Elvin Gadd, along with his work, had befriended, and had the assistance of, numerous paranormal persons that were his almost constant company. For none to be in sight was worrying, to say the least. Again the possibility of something being wrong with the Dark Moon came to Luigi's mind; but that couldn't be. The Moon was right where it should be, casting its eerie, purple light over the valley.

"I don't-a know," Mario said stubbornly, "But I think its-a time we found out." He carefully eased himself out of his chair and onto his feet. Now that the extreme pain in his arm had decreased, he no longer found himself groggy from the agony he had felt. He was a little lightheaded, perhaps, but that was most likely due to the blood he had lost. Not a dangerous level, but concerning nonetheless. "We should-a go deeper into the mansion. Maybe he is-a further in."

Luigi nodded reluctantly, but he knew Mario was right. He assisted his older brother, until it was obvious that Mario was fine and could handle himself on his own. Together they headed for the doorway leading back into the entrance room. But, just as they passed over the threshold, Luigi was yet again struck by a wave of strong dizziness. He gave out a gasp, alerting Mario at once. The red-clad plumber turned in time for Luigi to give a small cry, griping his head as though he feared it would fall off and roll away. Luigi stumbled, but didn't fall. He just stood there; hunched in on himself, like he were trying to make himself as small as possible.

Mario was grateful to see that this episode wasn't as severe as the one out in the woods, when the creature had hit him. But something else, equally worrying, caught his attention. While the attack seemed to be a little less strong, it lasted a good several moments longer. Luigi stayed as he was, gasping for almost a full minute before the dizziness abruptly left him. Straightening, the younger Mario brother gave a shaky sigh of relief.

Mario was steadying him the best he could with his uninjured arm, eyes full of deep concern. He no longer believed that Luigi was simply suffering from feeling queasy, or frightened. This was something else. And it frustrated Mario to no end that he hadn't a single clue as to what was wrong. "Luigi...Maybe we-a should rest a few-a more moments."

Under most circumstances, Luigi would have jumped at the chance. But, for once, he decided to brush the incident off as nothing to worry about...for now. "I'll be-a fine. Come on, bro; let's-a go find the _professore_." With that he continued forward, a concerned Mario following him closely.

* * *

 **Sorry this chapter was a little shorter. I just needed a 'breather chapter'; a chance for the characters to calm down and think about what's been happening. ;)**

 **Someone asked if Pulterpup would be in this story. I don't think so, but I will most likely mention him. :) All other questions...Well, we'll have to wait and see...**


	4. Risings

Luigi was just as concerned as Mario. He was confused and uneasy about the odd feeling that had hit him a total of three times since their arrival in Evershade Valley. It disturbed him. He had never felt that way before. It was like the world, or, at least, his perception of it, was being mixed up so badly, that he couldn't concentrate on anything. His surrounding would fade in and out, swirling to the point where he couldn't tell which way was up, and which was down. It was a sickening sensation; disorienting. He hoped with all his heart that he had now seen the last of it.

The younger brother led the way back out into the entrance room. It was almost natural for him; walking from room to room, as if he had spent an entire lifetime within its hold. In a way, he felt as though he had. How many hours had he wondered this place? From basement to rooftop, he knew it by heart; though certainly not in an endearing way. Like a mental map, it was burned in his memory.

"Which-a way?"

Luigi suddenly realized Mario expected him to lead. But of course; Mario had never walked these halls before. Never seen what he had. Luigi shuddered slightly, preparing himself for whatever they may be about to face. At least he had his brother by his side this time. "We need-a to go further in-a." He walked nervously forward, placing slightly shaking hands on the inner, double doors. "Through-a here."

Mario moved to stand behind Luigi. His worry was growing. Luigi didn't look well at all; in fact, he was very pale. That probably could have been attributed to the younger brother's intense fear, but Mario was no longer completely sure of that. He knew his brother. He had seen him at his best, and at his worst. This was different than any of those times. Mario was beginning to wonder if Luigi was in more need of rest than even him; and he was the one injured by the claws of some invisible beast! But Luigi's hurt, or whatever it was, seemed...deeper than that. And it made Mario very uneasy. Despite his misgivings, when Luigi opened the doors and stepped through, Mario followed without hesitation; determined to stick to his brother like glue.

They stood just inside the doorway, as still as statues; Luigi's eyes scanning their surroundings, and Mario keeping an eye trained on Luigi.

A long, dark hall stretched before them. It was carpeted; soft with one, single roll of thick fabric. The walls, which were painted a faded shade of red, was ripped in numerous places, allowing the dusty, cobwebbed interior of the wall-work to gap darkly. The walls themselves were lined with several oil lamps, burning dimly; as if they had always been lit, and always would be. Also lining the walls, on either side of the hall, stood the four, menacing figures of empty suits of armor. They stared with sightless slits, ever facing each other; unmoving. At the far end of this gloomy stretch of space, the gentle glow of light, creeping out from beneath a door, could be seen. Their destination.

Luigi moved forward several steps, mindful of the armored silhouettes. The last time he had set foot here, the ghosts had manipulated the suits, bringing the rusty swords they held falling down to catch him unaware. He had been lucky then, and had managed to make it through unharmed. He would not be mistaken again. But, as he and Mario edged forward, it became very apparent that the suits of armor would not be moving. They remained as they were. They passed the first set, Luigi hurrying passed, with a slightly bewildered Mario following him. Still, nothing happened. Whatever magic or curse had thrived within the suits before, was now gone, leaving nothing but hollow shells, as their makers had intended them to be.

As they passed the second pair, Luigi let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. It came out soft and shaky, but Mario still caught it. Giving his brother a comforting pat with his good arm, Mario stepped forward to open the double doors they had now reached. He pulled on the twin knobs, grunting in frustration when the door refused to budge.

" _Mama Mia!_ " he hissed, "Is-a every door in this-a mansion locked?!"

Luigi almost laughed bitterly at that comment. When he had been forced to come through a year ago, he had had no choice other than to hunt down every key for every locked door the mansion had to offer. It had taken so long; what felt like years. And, all that time, he had been fighting for his life against countless horrors and fears. This time, at least some of the doors were unlocked. Taking a hold of one of the doorknobs himself, Luigi attempted to first pull and then push against the structure. The handle turned just fine, but the door refused to budge.

"I don't think it's-a locked," he observed, "I think it's just-a stuck." He threw his shoulder against it, hearing a snap, and the door moved slightly. Mario joined him, and for the third time that day they found themselves forcing a door open. This one was stubborn. It creaked, groaned, and protested against their combined weight, bending inward, or outward; depending on whether they pushed or pulled. Suddenly it gave a crunch, sounding very odd in the silence around them. The door gave out a little more.

"One-a more time!" Mario encouraged, certain that that was all that would be required. Together, they decided to push for the final effort, doing so with as much strength as they could muster. There was a resounding _crack_ as something within the door gave out, and the twin portals opened suddenly. Unprepared for such a quick entree, Mario and Luigi fell through...and slid forward several feet across something extremely cold.

Mario gasped as his injured arm hit the ground, grinding into the floor. He lay there a moment, trying to outlast the pain that had erupted in his limb. He had closed his eyes at the impact, feeling slightly faint as the fast motion of falling and being hurt came, and then passed. He took in deep breaths, body relaxing as the burning sensation left him. But then a new feeling spread through his arm. A cold, chilling, almost wet feeling seemed to seep through his clothes and then spread against his skin. It had a numbing affect. Opening his eyes, Mario blinked several times in surprise, as he took in the new room they had fallen into.

It was the biggest chamber that they had entered yet; large and spacious, with a high, dark ceiling. A chandelier hung from above, casting just barely enough light to see by. To the right led a carpeted staircase, which rose to a balcony that ran half the length of the room. In front of them, at the far end of the room, a small fountain sat, much like the one out in the courtyard. A few doors, small and single, branched off from the room, leading who knew where. The place might have been quite homey, if not for one thing. It was all completely caked in ice. The whole room was encased in blue, clear crystal; the air cold enough one could see their own breath. Mario glanced back at the door they had forced their way through. Around its edges glittered icicles and frost, broken and cracked in places where the door had frozen shut. Well, that explained why it had been so hard to open.

Luigi had slid a little further than Mario had, his momentum to open the door having been a tad bit stronger than his brother's had. His legs had slid out from under him, causing him to land hard on his rear with a grunt. The cold flash of ice, caught by the beam of his flashlight, informed him of what he had fallen on, though it only caused him to be more confused. His flashlight fell from his hands when he went down, skittering across the glass-like surface, coming to rest pointing toward the wall to his left. After the shock of his stumble left his system, Luigi stiffly rose to his feet. Almost falling again, he steadied himself with his fingers resting lightly against the ice, cold pressed to his bare hands.

"It's all-a covered in ice!" he declared, unnecessarily. He finally managed to get to his feet without slipping.

"Good-a observation," came Mario's rather sarcastic reply. He was having a good deal more trouble rising, what with one arm being useless in this case. He accepted Luigi's hand and together, with only a little difficulty, managed to stand.

Luigi grabbed the flashlight before sending the beam slowly over their surroundings. He shivered, both with cold and nerves. "Ice. How can it-a be covered in-a ice?" It was the middle of summer, and though Evershade Valley was always a good deal chillier than the rest of the world, it was in no way cold enough to freeze anything. But this room was encased in ice; the floor was covered with what appeared to be a sheet two inches thick. The floorboards and rugs could be seen clearly, laminated underneath.

Luigi slipped, falling again, though he thankfully had the foresight to let go of Mario's arm, so as not to take his brother down with him. He landed on his rear once more, letting out an angry curse in Italian. Mario chuckled, leaning over slightly to help, but then straightened when he knew doing so would cause him to fall as well.

"Now the question is-a, did the professor come this-a way, or no?"

The younger brother struggled to his hands and knees, preparing to rise, when something caught his eye. Frowning, Luigi moved his face closer to the flooring, peering down through the ice at something buried beneath it. "There is-a something under here..." he murmured. Then his eyes went wide in surprise. "It's-a cloth!"

"Cloth?"

" _Sì_ , cloth. White-a cloth."

A feeling of dread washed over them both. The materiel trapped within the ice was indeed white; white as snow. A thick piece, undoubtedly ripped from the faded, pale coat of a scientist. It had to be Gadd's; there was no one else to which it could possibly belong. Luigi looked reluctantly, to see if, like the letter in the bunker, it too was covered in blood. To his immense relief, it was not. But it was dirty, stained with dirt and mud, much like their own clothes. Torn from its wearer, the fragment must have fallen before the frost and clear, glass-like ice had settled.

Mario gave the slippery surface a scuff with the toe of his boot, vainly wondering if they could dig the cloth out. But, what good would the material do them, even if they could get to it? "Well, at-a least we know he-a was here." _And that he didn't die here._ No body lay within the confines of the foyer. But who knew what the next room might hold. "Come on, Luigi; let's-a go and-"

All at once, a very deep rumble, like thunder, only lower, groaned beneath their feet. It started as a small, almost tickling vibration, but slowly it gained strength. Within a moment, the chandelier above them began to shimmy and shake; the crystals and candles of its design tinkling and rattling until the sound of it mixed with the growing roar.

"What's-a happening?!" Luigi cried out, trying his best to rise to his feet despite the trembling floor. Dust was beginning to rain down from the ceiling; ages of grit and mold disturbed by the quaking rafters, mixed with bits of plaster.

Mario winced as the motions of trying to stay balanced jarred his injured arm. He gritted his teeth, trying to focus on keeping himself upright. "I don't-a know!" he shouted above the din. Was it just him, or was the air getting unbearably hot? He looked down at his feet, seeing that the ice beneath them had gotten significantly thinner. Water was beginning to pool all around them, trickling to the right side of the room, where the floor slanted slightly in that direction. It dripped from above them, and slid in small, thin sheets down the banister.

All at once, with a disorienting jerk, the ice within the foyer cracked, sending tendrils of spider-webbed patterns dancing from wall to wall. Luigi and Mario fell to their knees, the motion far too sudden for them to keep standing. Mario gave a cry of pain, but was otherwise alright, at least as far as his younger brother could determine. Luigi had edged as close to Mario as he could, finally making it to his side. It felt like the whole world were trapped in some giant bottle; one that someone found amusing to shake with all their might. And then, just as quickly as it had started, the quivering came to a halt. The dust settled, falling into the good inch or so of water that had come to rest upon the floorboards. The heat, which had grown to a smothering intensity during the quake, lowered once more, though, thankfully, not enough to freeze the water the two brothers were now standing in.

Luigi coughed, expelling as much dust from his lungs as possible. He sat crouched by his brother, a hand lain gently on Mario's back. The older brother was coughing as well, though far harsher and hacking than Luigi's own. Luigi attempted to get his nerves under control. His body was shaking almost as violently as the room had been. "I...I-I don't-a think th-that we should s-stay here, Mario!" Fear that the vibrations would return were very much the younger brother's concern at the moment. But that fear was quickly replaced with another, far stronger one.

Like some terrible, prehistoric monster, a screech rang through the halls of the gloomy mansion. It was frightening; enough to rise the hairs on the backs of their necks. Their minds seized in definite horror, as they slowly and stiffly made their way to their feet. Their eyes locked on the door, leading to the guard hall from which they had come. It was the direction from which the noise had called.

"That...that didn't sound like-a that was out-a side the mansion," Mario whispered shakily, his head turning to his brother, but his eyes never leaving the door. Another roar rang out, leaving them without any more doubt, that the beast was both within the mansion, and that it was coming closer.

Luigi nearly fainted in terror. "What-a do we do?!" His mind was just about ready to fly into an uncontrollable panic.

"We-a could...fight it?"

Mario's hesitation managed to change the suggestion into a question. The fighter within him was convinced that he could take the beast down, injured arm or no. But the more human side knew that he couldn't. Not without help. In his condition he wouldn't last more than three seconds. Not to mention that the creature had the distinct advantage of being invisible on its side. Mario glanced to Luigi as he spoke, his own sense being reflected in his brother's blue eyes.

To stay and fight against such a foe would mean death. They couldn't fight something that they couldn't see. And though Luigi trusted Mario's abilities with his very life, he would not allow his brother to do so at the cost of _his_ _own_ life. Fighting was out of the question. That only left one other option.

"Run!"

As the two took of across the foyer, a very recognizable tremor began to cause ripples upon the water's surface. Not caused by their frantic rush, but the deep, thumping steps of the thing that was drawing steadily nearer. Luigi and Mario noticed, and stepped up their efforts. The water slashed up onto their overalls as they ran, but it didn't really matter; they were already soaked. And what value did clothes have when one's life was in danger? Absolutely nothing.

Luigi led the way, stumbling forward to their left, where a door stood partly open in the wall, framed by two large candles. The water was beginning to crystallize again, as the temperature in the room suddenly fell. Luigi yelped, his feet just barely escaping the transformation of ice that was now chasing them across the room. He slipped in the slush that was forming, but kept his balance, sliding on his feet and making contact with the door a little harder than he had intended. Mario's efforts were a little slower, but just as panicked. He managed to keep his footing this time, staying just ahead of the ice, and made it to the door a fraction of a second later.

It took a pull or two before the frost around the bottom of the door broke, allowing enough space for them to pass, and the two brothers were able to race through, slamming the door behind them. Just in time too, for the tremor of heavy, monstrous footsteps was now very near indeed. They could even hear a dull, throat-filled rumble; a growl. The beast was in the foyer.

Backs braced against the door, Mario and Luigi stood gasping for breath, knowing that they couldn't stay where they were. But Mario was tiring, and a sense of sickness was beginning to wheedle its way into Luigi; a trembling weakness. _Oh no, not again._ But he pushed it back down.

The younger brother jerked his head from side to side, taking in the interior of their new stronghold. It was a common hall, old and dusty. A long, thick carpet ran its length, giving the whole place the very distinct smell of mold and mildew. The lighting was dim; a sort of soft, hotel-like glow. Lamps adorned the walls, spreading a dim warmth of gold about them. But the hall was far from homey. The walls were faded and, in some places, ripped. Spiderwebs decorated every nook and cranny; adding to the dejected, abandoned atmosphere.

Luigi was wracking his brains, trying his best to recall a safe place to hide. The beast was huge; surely it couldn't follow them anywhere. For that matter, how had it gotten within the mansion at all? It was far to large to fit through any of the doors or hallways...and yet, it undoubtedly had. His mind suddenly snapping into full gear, Luigi leaped forward, snatching Mario's uninjured wrist as he did so. He had suddenly remembered. How could he have forgotten at all?! It was a slim chance, but it was the only one they had at the moment.

Running his hands over a part of the wall where no wallpaper remained; only dark, rotted boards, Luigi pushed, trying to find what he knew to be there. The floor beneath them was shaking, but in a rhythmic pattern. The beast was coming toward them, making its way through the foyer.

"L-Luigi?"

Mario's shaky voice only succeeded in making Luigi try harder, as panic began to take hold again. All at once, the woodwork gave way, revealing a hidden door completely disguised by decaying beams. It pushed inward, opening up to a yawning wall of darkness. For once in his life, Luigi didn't hesitate; grabbing his brother by the shoulder strap of his blue overalls, he rushed in. Once inside, he closed the door, shutting off his flashlight to leave them in utter blackness. The two brothers backed away from the door fearfully, knowing that it was the only thing standing between them and the murderous creature behind it.

Luigi wanted to put as much distance between them as possible. He felt water dripping down on him, soaking into his already wet and dirty clothes, coming from busted pipes above him. He could feel the soft padding of dirt piles beneath his feet, an almost beach-like sensation as opposed to the mansion's hard floorboards. Luigi recalled that the wall pocket, for that was what it was, went back ten or eleven feet. And he knew that he wouldn't feel even remotely comforted until his back lay pressed against that far wall. He took Mario right along with him; his brother not giving any complaint. In the darkness, the distance seemed longer. Luigi moved slowly, arm held out behind him, waiting to feel the wall...but what he felt instead was warm, fleshy skin. With a gasp, and despite the fear of the monster without, Luigi whirled around, flicking the flashlight in his hand back on with an audible _click_.

The two brothers stood in shock for a moment, stunned by what they had found. Finally, Mario found his voice. Stepping forward cautiously, he extended a nervous hand out to the slumped figure.

"...Professor?"

* * *

 **Sorry it took me so long to get this up guys, but I was suffering from writer's block. I don't get it very often, but when I do...sigh. I hate it. But I think I'm cured of it now, at least for the moment. ;D**

 **Please continue to review and let me now your thoughts! Thank you so very, very much!**


	5. Confessions

Mario's first fear was that the professor was dead. After their own harrowing experience, and what they had heard within E. Gadd's notes, it wasn't really all that far fetched. But as he leaned forward, Mario was relieved to see the gentle rise and fall of the older man's chest.

Elvin Gadd was a short fellow; smaller in stature than Mario, in more ways than one. His balding head attested to his many years of life, speckled with age spots above his ears. The only hint of hair that remained was a tall, waved tuft of white, sprouting from the center of his head. Only now, it was rather frizzled, as though he had been in a struggle. Even with his mouth closed, that one, square-shaped tooth still managed to peek, gleaming white in the beam of Luigi's flashlight. Slightly askew, but still perched on the base of his nose, Gadd's odd, swirl-like glasses glinted back at them, making his appearance even more disheveled.

The professor looked beaten and worn. He was unconscious...or asleep, and his clothes were ripped and filthy. In fact, from the amount of dust that had settled on him, it was obvious that he had been within the hidden chamber for quite some time. Mario noted that the professor's hand was wrapped with a makeshift bandage, stained through slightly with dark blood. It turned his stomach slightly.

Kneeling clumsily, Mario gave Gadd's shoulder a gentle shake. "Professor? Professor, can-a you hear me?" All he received in reply was silence. Turning to look up at Luigi, Mario gave a one shouldered shrug. "He's out-a cold. But he's alive-a..." His voice died out and his eyes widened in fear.

Luigi, trembling, followed his brother's gaze to the secret door. His heart almost stopped. A shadow, faint and shifting like a dark fog, was being cast against the outside of the door. They could see it, in the crack beneath the wood, by the floor; swaying from side to side as a snarl was heard from its master. The shadow passed, the creature having wandered to the left, further down the hall.

Luigi closed his eyes in relief...before the room took a sudden twist. Dizziness clouded his vision like before, only this time it _hurt_. It burned and tore mentally, for his physical person seemed to be just fine. A tingling feeling, not at all pleasant, crept up his legs, making them feel weak and unbelievably sore. It traveled up his spine, destroying what strength he had left. With a strangled cry, Luigi tumbled to the floor.

Mario went rigid for a moment as his brother's shout rang through the chamber like an alarm, declaring to all within earshot of where they were. But, to his surprise, and immense relief, the beast did not seem to have heard it. Within a moment or two the growling and snarling had faded somewhat; the creature having turned the corner out in the hall. As soon as it felt same enough to move, Mario shuffled to his brother's side. Laying his good hand on Luigi's back, he tried to both comfort him, as well as find out what was wrong. Luigi had curled up into as tight a ball as any human being can possibly manage. His body was shivering, as he gasped for breath against what appeared to be pain. He was starting to inhale dust, causing him to cough, which wasn't helping the situation.

As distressing as it was to see his younger sibling this way, Mario knew that his most pressing issue was to keep Luigi quiet. They had been lucky that the beast had not heard Luigi's cry; they might not be so lucky again. Luigi, to his credit, knew that as well, and gritted his teeth against the pain, holding in all noise, other than a few soft grunts and a whimper. Mario tried sitting him up, to stop the green plumber from inhaling any more dirt. He took the flashlight from the floor, where it had landed, and ran the beam over his brother's body. No injuries were apparent. Not a scratch. And yet Luigi's agony was very clear. Mario began to panic.

"Weegie?" In his fear he reverted to his brother's beloved nickname. "Weegie? What's wrong? Please, tell me so I can help!" His voice was a forced, hoarse whisper. What he felt like doing was yelling with all his might. The close confines of the chamber were starting to get to him. Mario had never told Luigi, - had never told _anyone_ \- but after being trapped twice within the flat dimensions of a painting by King Boo, he had developed a hardly concealable fear of enclosed spaces. No. That wasn't right. Not the enclosed spaces themselves, but rather being _trapped_ within them. Not being able to leave of his own free will; that was what got him. He was always fine otherwise. He had no difficulty usually, not even when using warp pipes. But that was when he knew he was going somewhere; wasn't stuck.

Luigi wasn't able to answer; too afraid to open his mouth for fear he would scream. The world felt as though it were being pulled away from him, both within and without. It tugged and pushed and pulled, all at once; taking his breath away. Then, just like the other three times, it suddenly stopped. The invisible strings of agony were cut, and Luigi slumped against his brother with a sigh that came out more like a sob. Mario caught him, still trying to comfort him. When Luigi couldn't trust himself to speak, he raised his exhausted gaze to his brother's own pained face.

"...I-I don't...don't-a know what happened..." He swallowed, choking down a cough. "...Something's not-a right..."

"That, young feller, is the _understatement_ of the year!"

Both Mario brothers jumped at the added voice. Mario jerked the flashlight back in the direction of the inner wall, illuminating the back of the chamber and a very groggy Elvin Gadd. The professor flinched, holding up his hands to shield his face from the bright beam of light. Mario diverted it quickly, muttering an apology. His relief at seeing the professor awake was beyond anything he could ever recall feeling before. He could have hugged him; though, for the sake of reputation, he managed to refrain from doing so.

"Professor!" Mario flinched at the loudness of his voice, sending a terrified glance toward the door. He was surprised when Gadd actually chuckled at his frightened reaction. It was a tired laugh, but genuine.

"Fear not, my boy...the monster has left. Even then, it would not be able to hear us."

Luigi had started to recover, the trembling having reduced to only slight tremors in his voice. His face still held a distinct unease, as did Mario's. "It...It-a wouldn't?"

"No." Gadd attempted to slowly sit up, succeeding stiffly. Mario reached forward with his good hand to steady their friend, but Elvin waved him off with a smile. "I'm not hurt, young fella. Just a bit tired...and worn." He stretched his back. "And a bit stiff."

Mario nodded to the professor's bandaged hand. "And that?"

"This?" Gadd actually looked embarrassed. "An accident. When I was hiding in the bunker that creature decided to show up. It started banging against the outside. Startled me so badly I fell; cut it on one of my security panels."

Luigi managed to gather himself, sitting up and moving away from Mario's gentle hold. His older brother had enough troubles of his own, without the added weight of an ailing younger sibling. He focused his attention on their older friend. " _Professore_ , what has-a been happening here? We got-a your note, but then-a when we arrived, you were no-a-where in sight! And then..." Luigi shuddered. "...And then that-a creature found us."

Gadd nodded, relief evident on his face; mixed with a sense of great worry. It was an expression rare to him, and it made their situation all the more disturbing. "I am so glad you boys are here. I'm in terrible trouble."

"I agree."

The professor ignored Mario's sarcasm. "It all started about two weeks ago. My ghosts and I were going about our work, undisturbed since you, Luigi, helped reassemble the Dark Moon. The ghosts have been very well-behaved; not a problem in the least. I was doing some experiments on paranormal readings. I was trying to enhance my Parascanners; you see I've been having a little trouble with them lately. In fact, just the other month I-"

"Not right now, Professor," Mario urged gently, but sternly. Gadd blinked at him for a moment, before continuing.

"Quite right, Mario. Sorry." He coughed lightly. "As the experiment was being conducted, I accidentally converted the scanners to something far more powerful, tracing a paranormal signal far stronger than I had ever discovered in all my years of Ghost study." The look on Gadd's face darkened. "I should have left it alone. I should have just carried on with my experiment and forgotten it."

Mario read the expression on his friend's face carefully. "But you didn't."

Elvin Gadd shook his head, lowering his eyes to the floor. It was the first time either Mario brother had ever seen the professor actually ashamed of something he had accomplished. Usually, no matter how disastrous, the man always found his work to be highly extraordinary and beyond reproach. "I started to study this new phenomenon. Through a series of sub-experiments, I discovered that the readings that I had detected were not only incredibly powerful, but also not of this world."

"Not...not of-a this world?" Luigi asked nervously. "What do-a you mean?"

"Another dimension, my lad; beyond the reach of this galaxy. Beyond this very existence." Gadd held a hand to his head shakily. "I am a very foolish man."

Mario exchanged a glance with his brother. "What did-a you do?"

"I created a portal." Elvin laughed then, rather bitterly. "Don't look so surprised. You know very well that that is possible. It's not all that different from time travel really; just needed a little modifying. I needed a larger place to work than my bunker, and so I had the ghosts help me move my equipment to the foyer. I succeeded in opening a steady threshold between our world and the one I detected with the parascanners. I was hoping to make friendly contact with the other side." His frown deepened. "But I found nothing. Nothing but incredibly frigid air and the white glow of ice, stretching for as far as the eye could see within the portal. I contemplated entering the portal myself, to explore; but then, for once, thought better of it. Seeing no reason to keep the portal open, I allowed it to collapse. In my mind, the experiment was a failure, and I was ready to move on." Gadd sighed. "But something had already come through the portal, unseen by me. A beast; invisible and invincible. I trapped it on _this_ side of the threshold."

"The beast," Luigi whispered.

"The _monster_ ," Gadd corrected, then continued. "My ghosts started disappearing; I couldn't find them anywhere. Things started happening; strange things. Noises, and tremors. Growling and snarling. Alarmed, I moved into the bunker, hoping to be safe there. That's when the monster found me; banging against the dome of my lab and causing me to hurt my hand. I escaped using my Pixelator, transporting myself to the mansion, but not before sending one of my last Greenies to deliver that letter to you, and leaving a clue in the bunker for you to find. I got a lot of blood on it I'm afraid, but I had been in such a hurry to get out of there that I hadn't yet had the opportunity to dress my wound." He indicated his wrapped hand. "A day or so later I was attacked by the monster a second time. I escaped unharmed, finding shelter here within this secret pocket between the walls of my mansion. And here I have remained since."

Luigi was looking increasingly agitated. "And how long-a has that-a been?"

"Three days."

"Three-a days!" Mario almost fell over in worry and shock. "Have-a you eaten?! Had-a any water?!"

"No." The professor's answer was soft, reluctant. But he quickly added, "But I'm fine! I've been waiting and praying that you two would come. I must have fallen asleep from exhaustion. I- Luigi, lad; what's the matter?"

The younger Mario brother had suddenly gone very pale, leaning forward with his eyes scrunched shut in obvious discomfort. His hand had reached forward to grip Mario's sleeve, causing the professor, as well as Mario himself, great alarm. Whatever seemed to be wrong passed very quickly, leaving Luigi shivering and breathing heavily.

"He keeps-a having these weird-a episodes, Professor," Mario explained, trying to simultaneously comfort his brother. "It started when-a we first got-a here, and keeps-a coming and-a going." He watched as an almost guilty look crept into Elvin Gadd's face. "You know what it-a is? What's-a wrong with him? Please-a tell us!" Mario hadn't realized just how frightened for his brother he truly was until those words passed his lips. Truth was, he was terrified. Frightened and shaky, Luigi had always been that; but pained, no. Not in a long time. And Mario wanted nothing more than to find a way to stop Luigi from feeling that way. No matter what. The guilt showing on Gadd's face deepened as he met Luigi's exhausted gaze. Mario could tell he knew something about it. And he proved right, as Gadd swallowed nervously and spoke.

"Well, er...you see, I...Well, to begin with, let me explain this. Do either of you boys know anything about Portal Laws?"

Mario and Luigi both shook their heads.

"Well, ah, yes; I don't suppose you would. Well, in order to open a steady portal, especially those that cross dimensions, it is necessary to use something as a conductor; a threshold, if you will, which allows a bridge to be formed between the two worlds. Without it, a steady portal would be impossible."

Mario frowned, somewhat impatiently. "What does-a this have to do with-a Luigi?"

The professor ran a hand through what little hair he had, looking more distressed by the minute. "That conductor, or base, or whatever one chooses to call it, must be, in some way, related to what we scientists call the Crossroads. It is like the inter-dimensional intersection of every possible world within all dimensions that exist. The threshold that I needed to open the portal had to be something physical that had passed through the Crossroads before; otherwise the portal would never have been steady." The professor fidgeted. "It is very rare to find such an object." He gave the brothers a forlorn look. "And even rarer when found in a person."

Mario blinked, glancing between Gadd and Luigi, catching the Professor's meaningful gaze. Slowly, it dawned on him. "You used Luigi as the threshold for your portal?!"

The professor blanched, knowing he still had a lot of explaining to do. "His...DNA, actually."

* * *

 **Another rather short chapter, and I apologize. I finished a very long story only several weeks ago in a different fandom where each chapter ranged from 4000 to 6000 words per chapter. This is just a bit over 2000. Guess I needed a break. ;)**


	6. Questionable Salvation

"His-a _WHAT?!_ "

Professor E. Gadd flinched at Mario's disbelieving bellow. He had known that the red-capped plumber would not be pleased. He was truly reluctant to tell the brothers, and probably never would have at all, had something not gone wrong with the experiment. Mario could be fiercely protective of Luigi, as could Luigi be of Mario. But Mario was the more likely to show it physically. The professor stepped back, putting up his hands defensively as he quickly stuttered into an explanation.

"N-Now, Mario...let me tell you what happened."

"You had-a better!"

"I-I knew that I would need something that had made journeys between dimensions before. An object or a person. You and Luigi have both been involved in vast inter-dimensional adventures before. There was that time that you two traveled the Crossroads multiple times in your fight against the Void*. The Void, as you know, served as a dimensional rift; and was a byproduct of the Chaos Heart, which you, Luigi, had extremely close contact with."

Both Mario brothers flinched. That had been one of their more unpleasant adventures. In fact, it was one of the worst, most horrific, and most peril-ridden adventures either hero could remember. Compared to that, both their experiences within Evershade Valley seemed like field days. The mental and emotional scars it had left behind were ones that Mario and Luigi seldom mentioned, but both acknowledged. Mario had very nearly lost his brother that time, Luigi having been brainwashed and forced to fight against him, becoming the evil Mr L. Luigi really didn't remember much about it, other than what Mario had quietly, and haltingly, told him. It sent shivers up both their spines. Mario sorely regretted having told Professor Gadd anything about it; especially if the he had used it for one of his experiments.

Mario frowned. "Then why-a choose Luigi? I traveled back-a and forth between dimensions the most-a during our fight against-a the Void. Wouldn't I have-a been a better choice?" Not that he would have been happy about that either. It just didn't make any sense. His mind felt jumbled, and disoriented; but he pushed the feeling down. They didn't have time for such things as weakness.

"Well, for one," the professor claimed, "His was the only DNA I had access to."

"How?" Luigi decided it was time he voice a question; it was about him, after all.

Again Gadd looked slightly guilty. "You left a fair amount of DNA in the fingerprints that covered the Poltergust. Yes, DNA can be left that way, especially if the person was sweating excessively. And, my dear boy, you certainly did a lot of that!" He chuckled, but then turned serious after a stern look from Mario. "Luigi has also passed through Paranormal Portals before. He seemed the likeliest choice." His guilt deepened. "Which, I'm afraid has had more an effect than I ever intended. The portal worked perfectly, of course; maybe a little too well. That creature is trapped here until we find a way to send it back."

"But-a why does Luigi keep-a getting sick?" Mario insisted. In his mind, he could see no connection. Of course, he knew basically nothing of portals and thresholds, and other such rubbish. He wanted a straight answer; something which was always hard to get from Gadd on any occasion. Mario wasn't really feeling up to the work such an answer would take to get. He was beginning to have trouble focusing, and his arm was starting to hurt again.

"Well, when I used Luigi's DNA to open the portal between the dimensions, it acts as a...coating, if you will. Like how a flower coats a bee with pollen when it passes through. The beast, or anything else passing either way through the dimension, would be coated with your brother's life signature. Not permanently, you understand, but long enough for it to learn to recognize Luigi's life pattern." Gadd sent Luigi an apologetic look. "The...discomfort you have been feeling...it only happens when the monster is nearby, is that correct?"

Both Mario and Luigi exchanged glances before nodding vigorously.

Gadd's expression became even more depressed. "That's what I was afraid of."

"What?" Mario was sick of beating around the bush. " _What?_ "

"The creature can probably sense things, as most beasts can. It has become used to Luigi's signature, and its mind knows it has something to do with how it got here. In other words, it's tracking us; more specifically, Luigi. As for the pain you keep feeling, lad, I'm not exactly sure what is causing it. If we could get to my bunker, I am pretty sure that I could answer some of those questions. But of this I am certain; we should move someplace else at once, for the beast can track us through Luigi."

"That's-a how it-a knew where to find us..." Luigi whispered fearfully.

Mario was still skeptical. "But it-a walked right-a by the door. Shouldn't it have-a sensed us?...Luigi, I mean."

Gadd shrugged. "More unanswered questions that will have to remain such, until I research otherwise."

Mario heaved a frustrated sigh. "Well, I guess-a we should- Agh!" The red-capped plumber suddenly jolted, griping his right hand to his left arm. Pain, almost as bad as when the creature had just attacked him, pulsated throughout his limb. It hurt all the more, because he hadn't been expecting it. Since Luigi had cleaned and bandaged it, his wound had not really given him any trouble. Not above the norm, anyway. But now it burned with a new fire; travelling up and down his nerves like molten lava. The abruptness caused his two companions to startle terribly.

Luigi leaped to his brother's side at once, helping Mario to sit down. He figured that would be less painful than standing with the arm hanging limp. "Mario! What's-a wrong?! Is-a it your arm-a?!" His panic was evident. He knew it could be nothing else. Mario had gone deathly pale; eye scrunched in agony with his fingers clutching desperately at the green cloth on his left arm.

Elvin Gadd was confused and worried, coming to kneel next to the two younger men. He took in the way the older brother was almost writhing in pain; eyes falling on Mario's wrapped limb. Putting two and two together quickly, a terrible thought dawned on him. _Oh no._ "The beast got him? Didn't it?" His voice came out far calmer than he felt, surprising even him.

Luigi looked up into his eyes with barely concealed tears of fear. He nodded, turning right back to his brother.

Gadd felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. Reaching forward, he quickly began to unwrap Mario's arm, having to grip the man's right wrist, prying Mario's hand out of the way. Mario himself was to overcome with agony to comprehend that he was trying to help. He kept trying to clutch his arm, making the professor's task harder. Finally, Gadd snapped uncharacteristically for Luigi to restrain Mario so he could get a look at the boy's arm. Luigi hesitated, but then did as he was told. It wasn't easy. In fact, if Mario hadn't already been in a weakened condition, Gadd doubted that the slighter brother would have been able to do it.

The green cloth was clean beneath the first few layers, but, as Gadd continued to husk away the fabric, they started to stick together; glued with the dark stain of dried blood. Managing to continue, the professor proceeded until the wound was finally exposed. Gadd winced just at the sight of it. A tear ran the length of Mario's arm, looking bright and irritated. Clear liquid was slowly leaking from the injury; a clear sign of infection. And from Mario's obvious pain, a very serious infection.

Luigi held his brother's wrist shakily, but firmly. He had long since handed the professor his flashlight, allowing Gadd to illuminate Mario's arm. When the injury became visible, Luigi couldn't help but gasp. The wound looked about ten times worse than before. The redness had spread, making the skin around it appear almost white. Pus flowed visibly, dripping around the sides of Mario's limb as though the tear itself were crying. How could the slash have gotten so bad so quickly? It had only been little more than an hour since the creature had attacked them in the woods. It shouldn't be so severe...And yet, Luigi gulped, it was.

"How did this happen? And when?" Gadd's voice carried great concern, and his eyes pinned Luigi down with their fear.

"Th-the monster attacked-a us in the woods, about-a an hour ago. I-I think it-a caught Mario with-a its claw." He flinched as Mario recoiled with another cry, trying to pull his wrist free of Luigi's grasp. "What's-a wrong with it?"

"It's infected; badly." Gadd continued to inspect the injury, getting the flashlight and his face as close as possible. "It seems to be acting...like poison."

"POISON!"

Gadd jumped at Luigi's high-pitched shriek. "Now, now; it's not as bad as all that." But then his face darkened in worry as he turned his gaze back to the wound. "On the other hand, I fear it may be. If the creature's claws were truly carrying some sort of toxin, it is very possible that it is progressive and deadly." Meeting Luigi's eyes again, he said gravely, "We need to get to the bunker. If we don't, it is very possible that we may lose him."

" _Oh_ , _ci aiuti_ *..." Luigi muttered weakly, absently dropping Mario's wrist. His brother was too exhausted at this point to even care, and his hand simply fell to his side. "What do-a we do?!"

"I am certain I have a working antidote in my bunker," Gadd assured, "We just have to get there without...coming across anything. It's our only chance. His only chance."

Luigi nodded, feverishly kicking his brain into gear. "Alright...Alright. How do-a we get there?"

"The Pixelator would have been the quickest way, and probably the safest. But I have no way of controlling the device from here. Even my spare remote is back at the bunker."

Luigi blinked, something nagging at the back of his memory. His hand crept toward the side pocket of this muddied overalls, his memory being restored as his fingers brushed over something metallic beneath the fabric. Driving his hand down into the pocket, he pulled out the small, flat device he and Mario had found in the ravaged bunker. Luckily, even after all the falling and stumbling it had been through, it was still perfectly intact. Luigi thanked his stars that he hadn't placed it in one of his back pockets. "Here, professor; can-a you use-a this?"

Gadd's eyes widened in disbelief. "That's it! The remote for the Pixelator; you've got it!"

Luigi startled, nearly dropping it. He handed it to the professor, switching his gaze between his ailing brother and the overexcited scientist. He just hoped this would work.

"Hmmm," Gadd hummed calculatingly. He flipped the remote upside down, checking every inch to make sure it was undamaged. "It seems alright. Even if it were, we'd have to take the chance. Now," he placed the device within his white coat. He looked down at Mario sadly. "We'll have to move him."

Luigi winced. "Is that-a necessary?"

Elvin Gadd nodded sullenly. "I'm afraid so. The closest camera for the Pixelator is in the foyer. You remember how that works."

Luigi did indeed. He had never liked being taken apart molecularly, transported from one place to the next, and then resembled. It felt...unsafe; unpredictable, and, as the professor always seemed to like pointing out jokingly, not always perfect. Accidents were plausible. Things cold interfere or disrupt the beam. Luigi remembered that in his last visit to Evershade Valley he had been plucked, mid-pixelation, right out of the beam by King Boo. That had really frightened him. It had been very unpleasant and very disorienting; and very rough going. Since them, Luigi had had even less faith in the professor's odd machine. But this was different. This was Mario's life on the line. Surely any risk was worth saving his brother.

Crouching, Luigi draped Mario's right arm over his shoulder, nodding to Gadd to do the same to his brother's left. Gadd did so and, though the pain for Mario was great, they soon had the red-capped plumber standing, weakly, between them.

"What-a now?" Luigi was very reluctant to move. Just getting Mario to his feet had been dreadfully agonizing, physically for Mario, and emotionally for him. Even Gadd seemed a bit unnerved by Mario's gasps and soft cries of pain.

"We'll take it slow. We have to get to the foyer. Once there, I can activate the Pixelator."

Luigi nodded, frowning in concentration. Stealing himself for the discomfort it would cause his brother, Luigi and the professor took the first step. As expected, Mario gasped slightly, but then fell quiet again. It was really worrying; how out of it Mario was. Whatever...toxin? Yeah, toxin. Whatever toxin had gotten into him, it was effecting him badly. Luigi vaguely wondered if Mario was even aware of what they were trying to do. No. That faraway look to his brother's eyes spoke volumes. Mario was in his own little world; fired by pain.

They made their way to the secret door, where Luigi paused nervously. "What if-a the monster is still-a out there? It's invisible; it-a could be there and-a we wouldn't even now it!"

Gadd struggled under Mario's weight, blanching in sympathy when his movements caused their patient more discomfort. "I wouldn't worry about that Luigi. We'll know when the beast is nearby."

"How?"

"Didn't you tell me that you become ill whenever the creature appears?" Luigi nodded, and the professor gave a wry smile. "Then let me know when you feel sick, and then we'll worry about whether the monster is out there."

Luigi blinked a few times, allowing that information to sink in. But of course. He was feeling just fine at the moment, so the coast had to be clear. Edging the creaky door with his hip, the younger brother began inching Mario forward with Gadd's help. It was slow going, and Luigi found it necessary to watch, not only his feet, but Mario's as well. Before long, they had made it completely out of the hidden chamber. Luckily, the door into the foyer was only directly across the hall. Carefully and silently, they made their way up and over the thick, faded carpet. When they came to the foyer door, Luigi gently took Mario and held his weight completely, while Gadd moved to open the door. To Luigi's relief, the door had not yet frozen shut. In fact, the foyer was once again a large, shifting pool of water.

Gadd's jaw just about hit the puddled floor. "What happened in _here_?!"

"When Mario and-a I came-a through earlier, this was-a all ice," Luigi supplied quickly, intent on getting Mario to safety. The professor cocked his head numbly, taking his position on Mario's left again. Together, they moved the injured man into the room. The water was even higher than before, now able to leak into their shoes. Luigi could feel his socks soak up the water like sponges. _Great._

All at once, a loud, eerie screech filled the air, coming from far down the common hall, from where they had just come. Almost at once, Luigi felt the room take a serious twist, dizziness causing him to stumble and nearly fall. But the knowledge that he was one of the only two things keeping Mario up gave him the strength to grit his teeth and stay standing.

"It's-a coming!"

Gadd didn't respond, but noticeably picked up his pace. They ended up dragging Mario, more than anything. The professor was scanning the foyer walls, obviously searching for the Pixelator camera. "Ah, there!" He pointed to the corner, near the odd-shaped fountain on the far side of the room. As quickly as they dared with Mario in tow, Luigi and the professor made their way to that region. Gadd reached into his coat, pulling out the remote, all the while trying to help steady their patient.

"Oh no..."

Luigi felt his heart skip at just those two, simple words. "W-what?"

Gadd was gazing worriedly up at the device on the wall that was supposed to be- no; _had_ to be their salvation. "The Pixelator camera, it is completely soaked! For all I know, it could be short circuited!"

Luigi snapped his eyes to the machine, taking in its condition for himself. It was dripping with moisture, some of its outer paint having begun to peel; due to the constant fluctuation of cold and heat. The ice had done damage too, that was certain. On one side, a small panel had fallen open, revealing numerous wires that sizzled and sparked whenever water dripped upon it. Luigi was no electrician, but even as a simple plumber he could see that the device was in no condition to use. But, then again...

Luigi winced as another wave of dizziness and pain struck him, stronger now. The vibrations in the floor were also gaining strength, attributing to the monster's approach. Mario was growing heavier in his grip, beginning, it seemed, to lose consciousness. This was _not_ the time to be cautious. " _Professore!_ "

"We can't use it if it doesn't work!" Gadd exploded, waving the remote in front of him, agitation in his face. "And even if it does, it could do us more harm than good!"

"We don't-a have a choice!"

"It's too dangerous!"

Luigi was hit with another incredibly fierce wave of discomfort. Panic had taken grip, and this time he didn't even try to hold it back. Lurching forward, Mario and all, Luigi snatched the remote right out of the professor's hand. Pointing it at the disheveled camera, he pushed the most prominent button on it's smooth, gray surface. The camera gave a click, then a spark. Luigi thought he heard the professor say something angrily, before the familiar sensation, starting at his head and working down to his feet, proved that the camera still had a little life left in it. With a series of bright, blinding, green flashes, the Pixelator did its work; breaking the three friends into colorful pixelated blocks, before transporting them into a strong, intense beam. So it had worked after all.

Luigi just hoped that the crazy contraption would be able to reassemble them just as easily...

* * *

 ***From the game** ** _Super Paper Mario_**

 ** _*_** ** _Oh, ci aiuti =_ Italian for "Oh, help us..."**

 **Just thought I'd let you know, I have a Deviantart account as well, under the same name, "Zeragii". I've only drawn a few Mario pictures, but I will probably do more. Eventually...**

 **Thanks for all your support so far everyone! :)**


	7. Momentary Safety

With a series of bright, green flashes, Luigi felt his body reassembling. With a final tingling sensation, he dropped to the bunker floor, Mario still held firmly at his side. The professor, who still clung to the red plumber's left, gave a grunt as he too met harshly with the ground. Mario, thankfully, suffered no pain from the jolt, having finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

Luigi struggled for breath, his body trying to cope with the intense dizziness he had felt, only to have it recede so very quickly. It left him feeling sick and shaky, but that too was passing swiftly. He slowly began to realize that he was kneeling on the floor. He didn't remember his legs buckling, though it was quite obvious that they had. He had dragged Mario down with him, but the professor had remained standing. The moment Gadd had fully materialized, he dashed forward, opening and searching every closet and cupboard within his bunker. He paid no attention to the mess he was making, nor did he seem to comprehend the mess that already existed. He simply pushed and scattered things, many once a precious part of his life's work and now nothing but junk. Finally, as he swung open one last storage space, Gadd gave a cry of relief, lurching forward to remove a small, green bottle from within. Racing back to the two brothers, he knelt down beside them.

"Luigi?...Luigi!" He didn't mean to shout, but that was just how it came from his mouth. He could see the disorientation in the green plumber's eyes, and felt a twinge of sorrow; but right now he couldn't focus on the younger brother. "Luigi, I need you to help me lay Mario over there." He motioned to a very small cot in the corner; one that was so hidden under papers and books that Luigi hadn't noticed it before, when he and Mario had first come to the bunker. "We don't have much time before the monster is able to track us again. If we're going to save your brother, we have to be swift!"

Luigi blinked blearily, shaking his head as though that might clear it. It did a little, and, with effort, he managed to slowly rise to his feet, taking his older sibling up with him. Mario was a dead weight; limp and totally unresponsive. It worried Luigi terribly. Mario hardly ever was this still. Of course, Mario had never been poisoned before...The thought made him shiver. As carefully as he could manage, Luigi began to shift his brother toward the old cot.

Gadd carelessly threw the objects on the bed to the floor, not even bothering to look at them. It didn't matter; the papers were ripped and torn, and so were the books. Nothing could be salvaged from this mess, so why bother. Those tombs and volumes could be replaced; Mario's life could not.

"Lay him right here. Yes; easy does it now, my boy. Alright, now stand back."

Luigi did so, glancing anxiously between his unconscious brother and the rather large needle that the professor carefully took from a pack under the cot. This cure, whatever it may be, was obviously an injection, not a drinkable antidote like Luigi had been imagining. He didn't like needles all that much; and neither did Mario. Not that the red clad plumber was even conscious enough to care. "Will that-a cure him?" Luigi didn't know much about poison, but he did know that it usually took some time to find an antidote; especially if the poison was new and unknown. The creature was from another dimension; it only made sense that Gadd would have no idea whether this cure would work.

The professor was in very much the same boat. "This is a little something I whipped up several months ago. It is a serum that can cure any poison this world can come up with. It is able to disable any toxins that may have been accumulated, and it can reverse some of the damage, if any has occurred." He sat on the edge of the cot, rolling up the sleeve of Mario's good arm. He skillfully filled the syringe with the antidote and then began scanning the brother's arm for a vein.

Gadd's face, had Luigi been able to see it, would not have held a comforting expression. His own words, that the serum could heal any poison 'this world could come up with', was also his greatest concern at the moment. The beast didn't come from their world. The antidote, in all its fantastic chemistry and clever creation, might be absolutely useless in this case. And that, though he hid it well, was causing the professor an enormous amount of anxiety. But worrying would only make things worse, perhaps unnecessarily. For the moment, he would do what he could.

Finding a vein in the crook of Mario's inner elbow, Gadd skillfully slid the needle beneath the skin. Mario didn't react, though his brother certainly did. Luigi gave a slight moan and looked away, not wishing to make matters worse. The situation was bad enough without him feeling faint. The professor gently pushed the green liquid out of the syringe and into his patient's body, praying the entire time that his efforts would not be in vain. When the last drop had passed into the younger man, Gadd carefully slipped the needle out. Placing a small piece of cloth over the hole he had made, he bent Mario's arm up firmly, but gently. After a moment of letting the serum do it's work, he let out an uncertain sigh, carefully placing Mario's arm down at the red plumber's side.

"Will...will he be al-a-right?" Luigi was standing at the professor's back, swaying unsteadily on his feet.

Gadd looked up at him, his face betraying a mix of concern and a weak sense of comfort. "The antidote has never failed in the past." His face darkened. "But I cannot be certain. We have done all we can. We'll just have to wait." He stood, facing Luigi fully. "How are you feeling, my boy?"

Luigi shrugged, his eyes still resting on Mario's still form. "A little tired, I guess-a."

"Dizzy?"

"A little. But not-a like-a before."

Gadd nodded, giving his companion a long, scanning look. "I do not think there is anything I can do to help you, other than to answer some questions we have. Come with me."

The professor moved to the far side of the room, where the consoles that had made up his life's work sat cracked and shattered. A few seemed to have only obtained minimal damage, while others were utterly destroyed. "It seems that beast had a field day. Though, how it was able to fit in here is a mystery." He threw a few books off of one particular console that was in far better shape than any of the others. "Let's see if I can get this running..."

After several moments of various techniques of kicking, fiddling, and shaking, the console lit up with a faint, green glow. Gadd beamed a smile at Luigi, apparently very proud of his success. "With this I can reach my files on the experiment that led to this whole mess. The ghosts and I gathered an enormous amount of data; though, sadly, I must admit I did not have a chance to read it all before the monster appeared. Perhaps the answers to some of our questions lay here." He began tapping in a series of commands into the panel, his odd glasses glinting with the eerie, green light.

Luigi watched nervously, having no real idea of what the professor planned to do. Answers to questions would be good; and the green clad plumber had more than he could count. He decided to start with one that the professor could answer without research.

"Professore?...How did-a you use-a me as a bridge to the other dimension? And why-a me?"

Gadd continued to scan the screen in front of his distractedly. Whether he was purposefully doing so, Luigi wasn't sure. "I thought I already explained that to you boys?" the professor muttered, somewhat impatiently. "You and your brother have crossed dimensions before. I was unable to get any DNA from Mario, but you were another matter. Your fingerprints on the Poltergust provided me with more than enough DNA to open the portal."

There had to be more to it than that. "But-a why? You could have-a contacted us. _Asked_ us."

There was a long pause. The professor had stopped moving altogether, his eyes still locked on the screen in front of him, but no longer scanning it's display. Finally, in a far softer voice, he murmured, "I was afraid you would say no."

Luigi blinked. He could see himself saying no; he didn't like the idea of his life signs being used to open a doorway into another world. But Mario probably wouldn't have minded. "Mario would have-a said yes, I-a think. He is-a always willing to help others, _Professore_." His voice had gained a tone of annoyance, despite his attempt to hide it. The professor should have known better than to not ask; he knew how Mario was. Luigi's older brother was an risk-taker; a hero. He would have jumped at the chance for another adventure. But not at the cost of anything like this.

Gadd had lowered his eyes to his own hands that lay resting shakily on the console. His voice was almost a whisper. "I...I didn't want Mario's DNA...I wanted yours." He looked up quickly to explain, having read the uncharacteristic anger that had flitted through the green plumber's stance. "The last two times that you have helped me in the past, I realized that there was something that you have that many don't. You have a sort of...connection with the dimensions; with the Crossroads, that connect the paths of many worlds."

"But, so does-a Mario!"

"Yes, but not like you do. Your DNA was more than sufficient. In order to open a steady portal, I needed something that had passed through the Crossroads before. You more than fit the bill. With you...I don't know how to explain it...It's almost like using the Crossroads itself. Your DNA doesn't just have residue of the Crossroads, but its entire genetic makeup is so close to the molecular structure of Crossroads that...well, it left me speechless!" He flinched, realizing that his voice carried far more excitement than it should have. "I...I'm sorry. I should have asked you first. I just got so carried away with my work. And I had your DNA at hand. It was so easy just to...to take what I needed, that I never thought of the consequences that might come from my actions."

"W-what consequences?" Luigi knew that the beast itself was the main consequence, and a terrible one at that; but the tone in Gadd's voice told him there were others. Ones that, in all honesty, the professor really didn't want to share with him.

Turning back to the console, with guilt written all over his face, Gadd began to prattle off a complicated answer. "My equipment had been recording my findings within the week that the monster first appeared. I never turned them off, which means that they have continued to gather data before and since your arrival. I have reason to believe that your dizzy spells have something to do with the beast, seeing as you only feel ill when it is nearby." He looked sadly at the array of busted consoles around him. "Luckily, not all my equipment was destroyed. We may be able to..." His voice trailed off as something finished processing on his screen. A whole lot of complicated symbols flashed in the corner of the panel, and a long string of letters and numbers appeared as well. Gadd leaned in, adjusting his glasses on the edge of his nose, reading the figures with an intense amount of concentration. Suddenly, his fingers were flying over the console with intent purpose, with maybe just a hint of panic.

"What is-a it?" Luigi cringed fearfully, sensing his companion's distress. "What's-a happening?"

"Nothing good," Gadd muttered, his voice holding a dark form of worry. A new string of information appeared on the screen, the professor's eyes scanning them with concern. Then, with a deepened guilt, he met Luigi's questioning gaze. "Everything's in flux!"

Luigi moved his mouth silently, testing the unfamiliar word. Finally, he seemed regain his voice. "What do-a you mean?"

Gadd ran a hand through his white, frizzled tuft of hair. "It means...Oh, balderdash!...It means that the monster is only half here!"

"What?!"

The professor got up from his seat and began to pace the small quarters of the bunker. "This is as best as I can do to explain it. There are two dimensions; ours and the beast's. Somehow, when I opened the portal, instead of creating a bridge between the worlds, I pulled them side by side. For a moment, they both existed in the same place; the mansion's foyer. Normally, had I closed the portal, and had nothing come through, the two dimensions should have extricated themselves back to their original forms. But, because the monster came through, when I closed the portal the dimensions weren't able to resume their separate existences."

Luigi looked around him nervously. He half expected to see the world crumbling around them, if he were to go by Gadd's obvious distress. But everything seemed relatively normal. "How does-a that explain what has-a been happening?"

"Two dimension, mixed within the same space; the same existence. The two worlds are fighting; struggling for reality. Luigi, that monster is trapped in both worlds. It's like existing on two sides of a closed door at once! That's why the foyer kept switching from normal, to ice, and then back again. One moment it has the property of our world, and the next it has the properties of the second. The beast is the same way."

"But look at what it-a did to Mario!" Luigi cried, waving a hand in the direction of his incapacitated brother. "That-a thing can hurt-a us. It's-a here, believe-a me!"

"It's partially trapped here; how, I don't know. Sometimes it's more here than others." Gadd thought a moment before his eyes widened. He ran back to the console, punching in a series of his own numbers.

Luigi looked over the professor's shoulder, not understanding anything that flashed across the screen. "What are-a you doing now?"

"Looking at the data concerning _your_ molecular structure," Gadd said hurriedly. The console lit up, yet more symbols streaming across it's surface. Luigi felt the professor stiffen at his side. "Oh no..."

The green brother groaned inwardly. "What-a now?" _How could things get any worse?_

Gadd looked up, apology emanating from him with intense anxiety. "I just reviewed your life signs from the last time you were here in Evershade Valley, with the data on you gained since you arrived here today." He gnawed his lip anxiously. "The readings show that your molecular structure is showing the same shiftment as the foyer and...and the monster."

Luigi didn't like the sound of that. "What...what does-a that mean?"

"...It-a means, Bro...y-you're not-a completely here either."

Gadd and Luigi startled harshly, not having expected to hear anything from their third member. Mario was sitting up on his cot, looking pale and sickly, but otherwise much better than he had appeared before. Dark circles under his eyes gave the impression that he needed more sleep; _real_ sleep, but the determination on his face spoke otherwise. His arms shook slightly, as he pushed himself up to his unsteady feet. He didn't quite make it, and ended up plopping right back down into a sitting position on the side of the cot. Gadd rushed forward to give a hand, but Mario fixed him with a stern glare.

"What have-a you done to-a my brother, Professor?" His voice carried no humor whatsoever; causing Gadd to step back with a look of pure guilt and fear pasted on his round face.

"B-because I used Luigi's DNA to form the portal, in a way, he is a part of it." He groaned. "Oh, I should have known better! Since the two dimensions are fluxing within the portal, the space and time distortions are effecting both him and the beast."

Luigi looked thoroughly disturbed. "But, I'm still all-a here!"

Gadd nodded, a look of small relief flitting into his expression. "It seems you are more here than there...wherever 'there' is. That's why whenever the monster is nearby, you become ill. Like a three way magnet, you and it are drawn to the portal. But the portal no longer exists. So the next best thing, at least, according your molecular structures, is to draw the two of you together. But that doesn't work either, because, again, you're like two opposite magnets. You push away from each other."

Mario winced as he gently shifted his arm into his lap, cradling it. "So...It's-a drawing them together _and-a_ pushing them apart? How is-a that-a possible?"

For once, Gadd looked completely uncertain. "I don't know, but that is what the readings show. That's why Luigi feels so ill when the creature is nearby. Half of him is drawn while the other half is repelled. Pushed and pulled at the same time. The beast seems more drawn than our friend here; which is why it has managed to follow us, tracking through Luigi."

"But it attacked-a Mario earlier," Luigi insisted nervously. "Shouldn't it have gone-a for me instead?"

"Indeed," the professor hummed sadly, digging back into his first aid to wrap Mario's arm in clean linen. "I can only imagine how disorienting this all must be for the monster itself. We don't even know what its own dimension is like. For all we know, things could be very different structurally. The beast's sense of direction could be totally off, which would cause him to be confused as to exactly where you are standing at any given moment. For all we know, left, right, up and down could be complete opposites in the beast's own dimension."

Luigi suddenly understood. "So, you think he was-a aiming for me, but got-a Mario instead?"

Gadd nodded. "Once it came in contact with something that it could feel, at least to a degree, it struck out. In essence, it mistook you, Mario, for Luigi."

There was a brief silence as the brothers digested all the information they had just been given. They didn't understand it half as well as they wished; and not even remotely as well as the professor did; but what they did understand frightened them terribly. Even Mario, who could only truly be scared when his brother's health and life were concerned, felt that chilling creep of fear slipping up his spine. The red clad plumber was the first to speak.

"How do-a we fix this?" His eyes went instantly to Gadd, expecting the man to already have a plan brilliantly worked out. He was sadly disappointed. The professor's eyes held the same look of desperate panic that Luigi sported, and that Mario himself was fighting down.

"The only thing I can think of," Gadd said, wringing his hands, "Is to open up the portal again. We would have to somehow get the creature back through to its own dimension. Then, logically, everything should return to its normal state. But that will be easier said than done."

Mario and Luigi exchanged glances. Mario frowned. "Why not?"

Gadd blanched. "In order to open the same portal a second time, I would need to use Luigi's life signs again. But now, with both worlds in constant flux, a simple copy of his DNA won't work."

Mario narrowed his eyes, taking in the man's nervous stance. "What would-a we use then?"

"The only thing that would be strong enough, would be if we used...Luigi himself."

* * *

 **Hello there! Sorry it's been so long. I'm preparing to leave to go live at a summer camp, where I will be working as a councilor for a month and a half. So, just as a heads up, if this story suddenly pauses, it means I'm away; but fear not, I promise that I will finish it when I return. I still have, like, three weeks until I leave, so I may be able to get in another chapter or two before then.**

 **Thank you for all your support so far!**


	8. Last Chance

"You have-a got to-a be _joking_!"

Gadd flinched visibly at Mario's shout, but continued wrapping his friend's injured arm. "I wish I were. But, according to what lies here on my screen, that is the only way!"

"There is-a no way that you are-a going to cause-a more problems for my-a brother than-a you already have!" That was a little harsh, Mario knew, but he was just...just so angry. He felt sick to his stomach, tired, weak, and incredibly sore. Not to mention that, because of Gadd's recklessness, Luigi was suffering; connected in some weird way to the monster that had almost killed him. It had all put Mario in a very foul mood. But, even as he said those words, Mario regretted them. The way the professor's shoulders slumped; as though a heavy weight had just been thrown upon him, along with the way he now refused to look Mario in the eye, prompted the red-clad plumber to add gently, "I...I don't want-a Luigi to get-a hurt." It wasn't really an apology, but, for now, it was the best he could willingly do.

There was a long pause; it seemed to stretch on forever, before Luigi's timid voice spoke up. "...Mario?..."

The red plumber looked up at his brother from his seat on the side of the cot. The minute Mario did so, he knew what Luigi wanted to say. "No, Luigi." That was his answer. His final say. He would not allow his brother to take a risk for his sake. For anyone's sake. That was _his_ job. To put himself in harm's way in order to help keep others safe. That was what a hero did. Mario was sure he could come up with some way to solve this without endangering his brother.

"But, Mario," Luigi insisted, "I don't-a want to keep feeling like-a this. If the _Professore_ is-a right, then this is-a the only way."

Mario looked hesitant, and even Gadd looked a little unnerved. True, the professor had just proposed the idea, but he had not yet stressed the risks such an endeavor might produce. He had already caused such an awful lot of trouble for his two friends; so much danger, and nearly death. He found himself freezing up at the thought of causing more problems; more danger.

"There must-a be some other way to fix-a this," Mario pried, sending Gadd a look that was a mix of hope and anger. The professor had finished the task of wrapping Mario's arm; having stepped back to put some space between them.

Elvin Gadd shook his head slowly, his eyes filled with regret. "I'm afraid not." Turning to Luigi, he spoke half out of reassurance and half out of warning. "The process, if done right, will be of no harm to you." He hesitated. "But it is extremely...uncertain. There might be risks. I...I really can't say what might happen if we tried."

Luigi lowered his gaze to the floor, thinking deeply. His mind automatically started listing all the things that could possibly go wrong. It was an endless list. A tremor began to take hold of him as the fear began to well up in his soul. But then, uncharacteristically, his mind began to run through all that might happen if they didn't try. The creature would run free. It would surely attack, and possibly kill, anyone it came in contact with. Not to mention that their own dimension was horribly tangled with that of the beast. That wasn't about to fix itself. Luigi's mind slowly began to accept his fate, as the knowledge that there really was no other way began to sink in. Quietly, but determinedly, Luigi gave his decision.

"Let's-a do it."

"Luigi!" Mario's disapproval was evident. With a surge of energy, the red-clad plumber managed to push himself up off the cot, taking a few stumbling steps forward before regaining his balance. He came to a halt right in front of his brother, standing a little awkwardly, in an attempt to favor his injured arm. "You can't-a do this!" _Please, don't do this._

Luigi gave his brother a long look. He was dirty, his clothes were ripped, and his arm bandaged in cloth that, even now was trying to stop the flow of blood beneath it. And yet, even then, Mario held a certain strength about him, even though he could barely stand. Because Mario was a hero. He was _known_ as a hero. Luigi had felt bitter at times, being only remembered as the younger brother of a legend. _If_ he was lucky to be remembered at all. That, naturally, upset him. But right now was _his_ time to be the hero, and he was mad with himself for finding that he was very reluctant to step forward and do so. He was mad that his body trembled; that he shivered and shook. He wanted to do this; not because he wanted to show Mario that he could...Not even to show the world that he could. He wanted to prove it to himself. And he didn't want Mario getting hurt any more for his sake. Mario had done things for him in the past; things that had saved his life. It was about time Luigi returned the favor.

"I have-a to." _Just let me try._

Mario opened his mouth to refuse, but something in Luigi's expression froze what he was going to say in his throat. For a moment, the brothers just stood there. Mario seemed to be searching for something in Luigi's eyes, reading something there that no words would have been able to argue with. With a sigh, the red-clad plumber actually backed down.

"Alright."

Luigi looked inwardly relieved. Glancing over at Gadd, he seemed to ask the professor the same, unspoken question. To which Elvin Gadd quickly submitted. With a nod, he walked over to one of the many storage holds he had searched through earlier. After a moment of digging around inside it, he stood and walked back to them, something wrapped in a clean cloth held in his hands. Removing the material, he revealed a beautiful, sapphire gem, just about the size of his palm.

"This stone will make it possible for the portal to be created," he said reverently. The gorgeous gem sparkled, even in the dim light inside the bunker. It was round, though not spherical. Like a fat, rounded lens; thinner toward the outside and thicker in the middle. "This is how we shall fix what I have done."

"But...I thought that-a you needed Luigi to-a open the portal?"

Gadd nodded. "I do; without him, it would be impossible. But it would also be impossible without this. Your brother's DNA is the threshold for the power of this stone to cross. The sapphire is the current, and Luigi is the wire that its energy must run through. Before, when I created the portal, I simply generated a false sense of mass to the DNA. It was crude, I'll admit, but when subjected to this stone, it created a strong, steady flow." He paused, knowing that most of what he had just said had probably gone right over their heads. "Now, it's much simpler; though no less uncertain. Luigi has to hold this stone, and allow its power to generate through him. But, even then; what with all the fluctuating and disturbances in the dimensions, it might not be a sturdy current."

Mario let out a frustrated grunt. What was with Gadd and his gems? And where did he even find stuff like that? Mario was clearly agreeing to this grudgingly. If he was going to go along with it all, then he at least wanted to know one thing. "Will it-a hurt him?" When Gadd didn't immediately respond, he pressed, a little anxiety creeping into his voice. "Will it-a _hurt him_?"

"I cannot be certain," Elvin Gadd muttered unwillingly. "It may be...unpleasent. Whether it will have lasting effects? Again, I cannot be certain. Even with all of my equipment up and running, I would not be able to tell you for sure."

Mario nodded. Turning to his brother, his face changed to a stern, expressionless pose; even though Luigi could still read it perfectly. "It's-a up-a to you, Luigi..." Mario wanted nothing more than for him to say no; but Mario also understood there was no other way.

Luigi seemed to cringe in on himself, his mind going over ever possible answer. But there was really only one. "Where should-a we open the portal?"

Gadd gave a sigh, whether of relief or determination, no one could tell. "In the foyer. It would be best to try and reestablish the bridge in as close to the spot I did before as possible."

"But you've seen-a that room!" Mario cried, "It's a wreck!"

"That is something that we will just have to deal with. The room, like the beast, is in a constant state of flux; half in and half out of two dimensions. There is nothing we can do about it."

Luigi nodded, before becoming very still. It caught the attention of his two companions, and they froze, watching him; knowing that, in all honesty, Luigi was their only warning when the beast was nearby.

Luigi felt sick; that dizziness starting to slowly creep into the edges of his consciousness. And it was steadily growing stronger. "It's-a coming!" he hissed.

Gadd launched into action at once. Running back over to his first aid supplies, he quickly refilled the syringe. Rushing to Mario, who had placed himself as close to Luigi as possible, Gadd reached for the red-clad plumber's arm. When Mario flinched back, the professor gave a hurried explanation. "I want to give you one more shot of my antidote before we leave. The poison in your body as been neutralized, but your strength is still low. This will help." He watched as Mario hesitated, obviously nervous around the presence of the needle. "Your brother will need you at your best," he added.

That was all it took. Mario pushed up the sleeve of his good arm and offered it to the professor. Gadd tried to ignore the fact that Mario had to look away as he slipped the needle in and out of plumber's skin.

" _Hurry.._." Luigi could feel the dizziness getting worse, as the creature they feared so strongly drew closer and closer. His muscles started to ache; no _burn_ , and his stomach gave a sudden twist. He felt hot, as though the room had suddenly been filled with humid steam. He tried to keep the shaking under control, but found it nearly impossible to do. Mario noticed, moving as close to his brother as he could; supporting him both mentally and physically.

Gadd moved over to one of the intact consoles, revving up the electronics with a few deft flips of a switch. Several other, undamaged panels lit up, as the pixelator was once again brought online. "We'll use the Pixelator to get us back into the foyer. We'll open the portal before the monster arrives, and then draw it inside; get it back to its own dimension." The professor continued tapping in various commands, making sure all was safe and in order before they tried to use his machine again. His hands moved swiftly and surely over the buttons and levers, but with a sense of panic; knowing that their time was quickly running short. With a final switch, he gave a hurried nod, turning to his two, far-more groggy companions. "Let's go!" He pushed the panel, activating the device, then ran to join his friends.

With another series of bright, green flashes, the trio felt their bodies enveloped in that, by now, familiar, tingling sensation. They were absorbed into the pixelator; disappearing from sight just as the floor of the bunker began to shake with the heavy footfalls of the beast.

Luigi was only vaguely aware of the increase in pain. It's hard to truly 'feel' anything when you've been molecularity disassembled. It was more like an extra amount of disorientation, which made him mentally shake his head as they traveled through the pixelator. It wasn't until they re-materialized within the foyer that he began to realize the intense agony that was screaming through every vein of his body. Even then, it wasn't until the beam of the device had let him go, that he was able to react to the pain.

"AH!"

Mario nearly jumped out of his skin at his brother's sudden cry. He was feeling a little confused; as he always seemed to after using the professor's machine, and for the life of him he couldn't figure out what was wrong. They hadn't fallen to the ground that hard. The red-clad plumber's thoughts were lost as Luigi suddenly latched onto him, falling to his knees and almost choking with agony. Mario barely had time to catch him and try to ease him to the icy floor. He realized that something had to be seriously wrong.

"Professor!"

Gadd was already trying to minister to the wreathing brother, but it wasn't easy. Luigi had curled in on himself, arms wrapped around his body so tightly that Elvin Gadd could not get a proper look at him. Even Mario couldn't coax him to let them help. This only increased the older brother's panic.

"What's-a wrong?! What's-a happening?!"

If possible, the professor's face filled with even more guilt than before. His eyes held a different kind of pain; emotional anguish. "The transport must have increased the state of flux within him!" he yelled, even though there really was no reason to do so. "The repixelation, though successful, very nearly...wasn't..." He rested a shaking hand on Luigi's back, as if that alone would ease the brother's pain.

Mario should have turned on the professor in rage; the man had made more mistakes this time round than most would be willing to forgive. But Mario couldn't bring himself to do so. Gadd seemed almost just as agonized by his actions as Luigi was suffering himself. And that was consequence enough without harsh words on top of it.

A terribly recognizable, animistic shriek filled the air. Mario and Gadd lifted their heads with a wash of doom sweeping over them. Luigi seemed to register the sound, uncurling slightly; trying to pull himself together. But before he could barely manage to, he felt himself being gently, but firmly, pulled to his feet. His pain had decreased somewhat, but the confusion and dizziness was higher than anything he had experienced yet. Everything felt and sounded as though it were miles away; making it impossible to understand the voices that he could just barely recognize as his brother and the professor.

"What are-a you doing?!" Mario cried, trying to ease his brother's right side as Gadd forced Luigi into a standing position. Luigi was in no state to move, and yet the professor seemed intent on making him do so. "He's-a too sick to get up!"

"Don't you understand?!" Gadd hissed; though his voice was filled more with regret than anger. "He's our only chance! If that monster gets here before we've opened the portal, our lives won't be worth a hill of beans!"

Mario's expression became desperate. "We can go back-a to the bunker! Try again-a later!"

"Your brother won't survive another trip through the pixelator! Can't you see that?! Not in this state!" His voice and face softened at Mario's distress. "It's now...or never."

Mario paused, glancing between his ill brother and the direction the beast was sure to come. Luigi was so weak...but to wait would mean their deaths...But the plan was dangerous...Mario didn't think he could stand losing his brother that way. But a chance was a chance; no matter how small. If going through with the professor's plan gave them even a sliver of hope, then that was worth it.

"Let's-a go."

It came out as more of a croak than a whisper, but Gadd heard it and nodded. "First, he needs to concentrate. We need to get him...a little more aware."

Mario gave the older man an exasperated look. "And-a how are-a we supposed to do that?!"

"Talk to him," Gadd commanded, as he began to hunt his pocket for the Portal Gem. "You are his brother; you share a special bond. Surely that means something, no matter the plight?"

Mario nodded, shifting his concerned gaze to his brother's face. "Luigi? Come on, bro...Luigi?" He rubbed Luigi's arm, hoping touch and words together might snap him out of it. It was cold in the foyer; covered in ice. Luigi had to be cold.

 _Luigi?...Luigi?..._ The green-clad brother began to focus on that far off voice; trying to discern it from the fog that had taken over his mind. Slowly, but surely, it began to pull him out of the confusion and pain; sharpening his senses until he finally found he could answer.

"I...I-I'm-a right...right here..."

Mario startled slightly as his brother's eyes, blurred and distant, managed to lock with his own. It was unnerving; like gazing too deeply into one's own eyes in a mirror, far away and only half real. "Good...Good, Luigi...Now, can you-a stand?"

"I...think-a so..."

Carefully, the two helped steady him until Luigi was indeed standing on his own. The professor talked gently; explaining what they planned to do. "The creature is coming, Luigi; we don't have much time." He flinched as those dulled eyes turned to meet with his own. They really didn't have much time at all. "We have to go on with our plan...You do remember the plan, don't you?"

Luigi nodded weakly. "Y...yes."

"Okay." The professor didn't sound at all assured; but there was little left to be done about it. The chandelier in the ice-encased foyer began to tinkle and shake; the beast ever approaching. Finally feeling his fingers grasp the item in his pocket, Gadd held forth the sapphire. It glinted like the ice around them; cold and fragile; beautiful. Holding it out, Gadd offered it to Luigi.

"He's-a too weak," Mario warned, stepping forward protectively. He understood the gravity of their situation, but a dark feeling in his gut told him things would be far from alright.

"We have no choice," the professor said again, sternly.

A snarl just beyond the door; in the guard hall, sounded angrily and mercilessly. Both men looked at Luigi. The green plumber was barely conscious; barely able to stand. His breathing was erratic, and a cold sweat had broken out over his skin. He was pale; almost as white as Polterpup*. He was becoming weaker with every second the creature drew nearer. But he seemed a little more aware.

Reaching forward with a shaking hand, Luigi took the stone from Gadd's own. "What...What do I-a do?"

Gadd seemed nearly overwhelmed with emotion; or maybe it was a sense of awe and shock. "Just...J-just will yourself to let the gem's energy pass through you. Relax, it should kind of just...happen on it's own." But then he caught Luigi's wrist. "I'm...I'm so sorry...for all of this..." His voice was so soft, Luigi barely heard it.

Somehow, Luigi managed the smallest of smiles. "I-it's-a okay, _Professore_...It's-a okay..." He forgave him. After all, how could Gadd have known that all of this would have happened?

At Luigi's words, Gadd seemed to be released from a burden no one could see. Taking hold of Mario, Gadd pulled the reluctant brother away from Luigi's side. Mario knew that it would be dangerous for them if they didn't. The creature would go after Luigi; and while that was what they wanted in one sense, it was exactly what he didn't want in another.

Luigi closed his eyes, trying to will his scattered, frightened mind and body to relax; let go. He needed to will the gem's energy through him? That was easier said then done when one was so confused and disoriented that he couldn't even feel where he was or what he was in relation to anything else. He was a tossing, churning sea of pain and hurt; fear and despair...But then a feeling...an unfamiliar feeling, began to well up in him too. A warm, strong energy that scared him at first, but then seemed to sooth him. The agony left, and all at once he was more aware and awake than he had ever been before. His eyes snapped open, taking in the room; Mario, the professor, the ice...Everything.

All at once the room filled with a brilliant, golden flash; like sunshine; no, it put sunshine to shame. It reached every corner; every nook and cranny. It all seemed to gather behind him, and then, with a sound like thunder, the portal opened wide. The two dimensions became one. Beyond the shimmering hole was a land filled with snow and ice; cold and winter. And Luigi, like a bridge indeed, stood sandwiched between them.

And just in time.

With a crash, the monster came smashing right through the foyer door, right out into plain sight; no longer invisible. And what a sight it was. The creature was _huge_ , a mighty beast among all beasts; a nightmare. It was skinned like a lizard, with scales of pale white and inky black. Bowser would have seemed like a pansy in comparison. This monster had horns and talons that shone, scraping the ice like knives. Mario winced just at the sight of them, knowing that it was one of these that had injured him. It's eyes were large, and all pupil; dark as night. A deep rumble, like a dragon, issued from its throat as it paused by the door, scanning the room with deadly malice.

Then, its sight settled on Luigi.

With a roar, the monster lurched forward, huge strides closing the distance at an alarming speed.

"LUIGI!" Mario couldn't help it. Seeing this beast charging his only brother; his only _family_ , was just more than his nerves could bare. He lunged to race forward, but Gadd held him back, forcing Mario to struggle in vain.

It was almost upon the green plumber.

"LUIGI!"

Moments away.

"STOP! RUN!"

Seconds. Luigi didn't move.

"NO!"

The beast opened its jaws, baring more teeth then should ever be possible to find in a single mouth, no matter how big. Time was up; it was over...But then, the monster ran right through. It was like Luigi's body was no longer there; more now like the ghosts he had trapped so many times before. The beast passed right through him, running straight through to the portal behind. Perhaps it was because Luigi existed in both worlds at once...or because he existed in neither. Like a wormhole, the portal took in the beast; sucking it inside with a creaking flash of energy. Another sound like thunder sounded, and the ice within the foyer melted suddenly, causing Mario and Gadd to stumble and nearly fall.

Things might have all worked out alright then, if not for yet another horrible mistake.

"Oh no!" Gadd's voice carried a sound of absolute horror, as he seemed to realize something just before a terrible shake took the room. This was like the quake of before, only much stronger. Mario and the professor were thrown to the wet floor, struggling to keep from rolling on top of each other. The portal began to fluctuate and pulse, like a screen or light petering out; dying. "No! No! This is bad!"

Mario wasn't quite sure what was going on, but he knew it couldn't be good. "What?! WHAT?!"

"The portal! The portal is collapsing!" Gadd had to practically scream over the noise that had filled the foyer. It was deafening.

"But that's-a what we wanted, right?!" Mario yelled back, "For the portal to-a close with the monster inside-a?"

"Yes!" The professor's horror was evident. "But not like this! Luigi's still in there!"

It hit Mario like a ton of bricks. Luigi. His brother. He was still in both dimensions. What would happen if the portal collapsed? Nothing good, if Gadd's reaction was anything to go by. "Mama Mia!" With a cry, Mario launched himself to his feet, despite the shaking, quaking floor beneath him. Drunkenly, he tried to make a crooked beeline for his brother, who was still standing still and erect between the two worlds. The sounds around him increased, as did the quakes. With a cry of pain and frustration, he fell again. "Luigi!"

But it was too late.

With a blinding flash, the portal...collapsed...

* * *

 ***Polterpup is a dog-like ghost that became friends with Luigi in the game "Luigi's Mansion". In the very end of the game, we see that the pup is living with Luigi as a sort of pet. But, like much Mario universe canon, that is completely up to anyone's interpretation. ;) I promised I'd mention him.**

 **Here we go, a little bit of a longer chapter for a change. Took me a while. Might be the last chapter until I return from camp, but possibly not. My hope would be to finish this story before I leave, but...eh, we'll see. ;)**

 **Thank you all!**


	9. Two Sides of a Closed Door

Just like the portal behind him, Luigi collapsed. He looked uncommonly like a colorful, green puppet cut from its taut strings; falling limp into a heap on the wet floor.

"Luigi!"

The quakes had halted, though Mario barely noticed. Stumbling to his feet, the red-clad plumber raced forward, the professor at his heels. Making it to his brother's side, Mario dropped to his knees, gathering Luigi's upper body in his arms, despite the pain it caused himself, and hurriedly lay an ear to his still brother's chest. Mario had to fight the urge to cry in relief when he heard a low, barely audible thump. Within his brother continued to beat his kind, caring heart. Weak and slow; but there nonetheless.

"He's alive..." It came out as a barely concealed sob; though whether of joy or sorrow no one could discern. He began to shake his brother's shoulders gently, worry taking over once more when he found it hard to rouse the green-clad plumber. "Luigi? Luigi! Come on, Bro; wake up! It's-a over."

Gadd knelt beside them, laying a hand carefully on Mario's back. "Mario..." But then he froze as Luigi gave a barely perceivable stir. Both men held their breath, waiting in anxiety for their companion to wake up. Finally, those gentle, blue eyes fluttered open. Mario and the professor might have cheered with joy at the sight...but something was wrong. While Luigi's eyes were indeed open, they held no recognition. No understanding, or awareness whatsoever. The blue orbs just stared blankly into space, right through Mario and Gadd, as though they weren't even there. Luigi's expression was an empty slate; no emotion, good or bad, showed there. And that lively sparkle of life that resides in the eyes of all living beings, was barely there; dimmed and faded. Almost gone.

Mario's own emotions were worn and tiring. His mind was slowly beginning to accept the fact that, try as they might, nothing was going to go right for them; especially Luigi. "What's-a wrong with him?" His voice sounded strained; exhausted. It was like all his energy was being sapped from him. With each new complication, there arose in him a darker and darker despair.

Gadd moved so that he was directly in front of Luigi, gazing with obvious concern into the younger man's dulled eyes. He waved a hand close to the plumber's face, expecting at least some kind of reaction. But there was none. It gave him a cold chill down his spine. Luigi was certainly there in body, but as far as anything else...A terrible thought came to the professor, filling him with dread. Taking Luigi by both elbows, Gadd gently pulled the plumber to his feet, where, to Mario's surprise, Luigi stood erect and still on his own. But this only proved to worry the professor even more.

"He's...he's...ah..." Gadd seemed terribly agitated; more so then before. Mario was looking at him, eyes wide and questioning, but feeling that whatever had happened was very bad. And that would be absolutely correct. Things were now completely and utterly chaotic. And, for once, the professor wasn't sure if there was anything that anyone, even Mario, could do to fix it. "Mario...your brother is..." He swallowed, knowing that the news would not be taken well. "...He's now the one trapped in two dimensions. Fully."

"What?!" Mario's eyes filled with panic; something that Gadd was pretty sure he had never seen in the lad before. Mario was usually very level-headed; almost professional in his ways of handling stressful or unusual situations. But not, so it seemed, when his brother was involved. "What do you mean 'trapped in two dimensions fully?!"

Gadd tried to keep the anxiety out of his voice; not quite succeeding. "Just as the beast was half in and half out of both worlds, because of a...destabilization in the portal's creative makeup, Luigi is now trapped, just as the monster was."

Mario didn't even try to understand all that the professor had said. He could feel Luigi's shallow breathing; forcing himself not to look down at his brother for fear of meeting those dull, lifeless eyes. "Fix this!" He knew it wasn't fair, but what else could he say? If anyone could save Luigi, Gadd could; he was the only person who understood any of this stuff any way. For once, Mario knew he couldn't be the hero this time; it was hard enough just being a brother. How miserably he had failed at that! He shouldn't have dragged Luigi out to Evershade Valley in the first place. Mario knew how Luigi felt about the spooky mansions and ghosts; never mind a full-blown, ferocious monster. He should have left him home, where it was safe; where nothing bad like this could have happened. What kind of brother was he?

"I can't!" Gadd groaned, as if the words physically hurt him to say. He held his hands up, trying to calm the panic he could so easily read in his friend's face. "With Luigi's consciousness trapped in both dimensions, we can't use him to re-initiate the portal the way we did before. It wouldn't work!"

Mario's panicked expression turned to one of rage. The look seemed out of place on the usually cheerful, round face of the red-clad plumber. It threw Gadd for a loop, tossing him off so much that he didn't see the attack until Mario already had him dangling a foot off the ground. Mario had two fistfuls of the professor's white lab jacket clenched in his fists before him; their faces barely three inches apart. "There must-a be another way!" Mario yelled, angry, though Gadd could feel a tremor of fear wracking his companion's body. "We can't-a just leave him like-a this! He's-a my bro! And your-a friend! There must-a be another way to open the portal and-a save him!"

Elvin Gadd tried not to look too terrified. Mario's face was contorted with such rage and emotional anguish; and all because of his stupid experiments. If he had just let well-enough-alone, nothing like this would ever have happened. The brothers would never have gotten into such a mess, and the monster would never have arrived in the first place. Gadd sent a grieved glance over Mario's shoulder at the dazed form of Luigi, standing, unmoving, in a puddle of cold, melted ice water. His clothes were ripped and torn; muddied by the trials he had faced. His skin was so pale...and those eyes. Gadd shuddered. His mind went over every bit of research he had been involved in the last few weeks, trying to think of something; anything, that might save the younger brother's life. Suddenly, his mind lighted upon a piece of information that he had given very little thought to. It had seemed so insignificant at the time; but now it was a matter of life and death.

"There...there is one other way," the professor wheezed, still caught up in the older brother's strong grip. "...But it is a very slim chance."

Mario seemed to realize his rough treatment of the man he called a friend. Gently, and with no small amount of self-restraint, Mario set Gadd's feet back down on the floor. His face, however, still gleamed with unshed anger. "What is-a it?"

"A theory," the professor gulped, rubbing the back of his neck where the collar of his coat had pushed into his skin, leaving a red mark. "A theory that is very much still untested. My ghosts and I discovered it some time ago, but, due to lack of research and experience, I soon abandoned it, with the intention of going back to it as a sort of hobby. It-"

"Get to-a the point, Professor!"

Gadd flinched. "Yes!...Er...I call it the Echo Theory."

Mario raised an eyebrow. "The...Echo Theory?"

"Yes. You see, in my studies, I have discovered a large list of unusual, paranormal facts and phenomenon. This particular discovery involved an...accident." He felt the guilt well up within him. He could see Mario's passive face, and knew he had better just move on. "A Greenie* under my direction had an experience much like Luigi, getting trapped in two sub universes; created by me, and nowhere near as complicated as what we're dealing with here. In that instance, an invisible copy of the Greenie was present within the room at the same time as his actual "body", if you see what I mean. The invisible copy acted as a mirror image of the spirit's half in the opposite dimension."

Mario blinked, now completely lost. "W-what?"

Gadd sighed in frustration, toning down his words to as simple an explanation as he could without sounding condescending. "Two universes, like we have here, with an individual's body trapped on one side," he pointed to Luigi, "His soul trapped on the other." He gestured to the place where the portal had disappeared. "If this situation is anything like the incident with the Greenie, there should be an invisible, partially substantial copy, or 'Echo', of Luigi's soul on _this_ side." He gazed around them. "Somewhere."

Mario lay a hand to his aching head. "Alright...Alright, how do-a we find-a this Echo, and how does it help-a Luigi?"

The professor thought back to his research. "Well, with the Greenie, he was restored; meaning, his two halves were reunited, when his Echo lined up with his body." Again Mario gave him that look of incomprehension. "Which means Luigi's Echo would have to move until it was standing here, in exactly the place Luigi's body is standing now. It all happened by accident with the Greenie; which, if you think about it, was quite lucky for him. But I have no certain data on any of this. Like I said, it was an accident, and I had more important work I had been distracted with at the time. I don't know whether such an Echo would appear in this case; a Greenie is not at all like a man, and these are real dimensions we're dealing with here." He frowned at Mario's crushed expression. "I told you it was a very slim chance."

Mario turned to look at his brother with a look of emotional anguish. It was a very small chance indeed. Luigi's soul - Mama mia, that was a strange thought - was more than likely wandering about in confusion in the other dimension. Luigi would have no idea of what he needed to do. The probability of him connecting with his other half was extremely small; almost nonexistent...But Mario believed in Luigi. They had been through tougher spots than this...hadn't they? Just because they didn't know what to do, didn't mean there wasn't anything that could be done. And Luigi wouldn't be giving up; Mario knew that, and knew that he couldn't either. Nodding to himself with a silent promise, Mario turned back to the professor; his face set in determination.

"How do-a we find-a his Echo?"

* * *

Luigi wasn't sure where he was. He felt lightheaded; though not the mind-crushing dizziness from before. He felt incredibly cold, and even before he managed to get his eyes open he could see the glare of white snow through his closed eyelids. When he finally managed to open them; which proved to be far harder than he ever could have imagined, Luigi found that it gave him no better idea of where he was than when his eyes had been closed. In fact, he was greeted with exactly the same thing; a hazy wall of bright, white atmosphere. Like he was gazing through a pane of finely frosted glass. He could feel the chill of the air; feel the crunching of snow beneath his feet; and a bitter breeze blew against him, causing him to shiver. He could only vaguely discern shapes; distinguishing only between the blur of, what he believed to be, a field of white snow stretching on and on, and a slightly grayer blur of sky above him. He knew he wasn't supposed to be here...wherever it happened to be; and he certainly wasn't dressed for it. He glanced down at himself, puzzled when he could not seem to locate his own body. Panic began to take hold, and shivers of terror rocked him to his core. With a feeling of dread, he took three stumbling steps forward, praying for a glimpse of his brother, or the professor...Anything.

 _W-where am I?_ He meant to speak the words out loud, but seemed unable to. Instead, the words manifested themselves as a loud, shuddering thought in his own mind.

 _"_ Mine. Mine home."

The voice was gruff and deep, filled with hostility despite the short sentence that contained it. It sounded far off and faint, as though a great distance separated them. Luigi felt his invisible body grow even colder than the eternal winter around him. With a gasp, he whirled around, still unable to see anything clearly. He was met by the blurred image of something enormous standing over him; large, dark, and incredibly close. Even though he could not truly see it, even at this range, Luigi knew it was the monster. The beast that had hunted them for the last twenty-four hours. The creature that had injured Mario. He stumbled back several steps as things started to make a little more sense. Something must have happened; gone wrong. He was now on the other side of the portal; trapped as the beast had been trapped in theirs. Did that mean he was invisible here? As the beast had been in their dimension?

 _Can you-a...see me?_

Again his words came out as a thought, but the monster seemed to hear him just fine. "No. Sense you, know where you is," it growled back, taking a threatening step forward. "Try nothing." The voice grew even darker. "Why you attack mine?!" it demanded, and the sudden increase in volume caused Luigi's head to throb painfully. He held his hands to his ears, backing away even further, but the great, dark shape of his enemy followed. "Tell!"

Luigi's mind launched into panic, not understanding fully what the towering creature could possibly mean. He hadn't meant to get trapped here; by no means, didn't even want to be anywhere near this frozen world. But, slowly, he began to realize that the beast was not necessarily referring to his presence at the moment. Gadd had opened a portal into this place, trapping this creature much in the same way that he was now trapped. That, to one who didn't know any better, would seem very much like an attack indeed. But that had not been Gadd's intention at all, and Luigi suddenly realized just how hard that was going to be to explain.

 _W-we did't mean-a to..._ He heard his own voice stutter shakily in his head. Somehow it sounded even weaker in his mind; uncertain; frightened. Even before the thought had fully passed, Luigi knew that that was the wrong answer.

"LYING!" came the hated reply; low and dangerous, and full of malice. "You come! Conquer mine people! " The dark, frightening form took yet another step closer, towering over the trembling, invisible man before it.

Luigi flinched, not being able to judge just how close the creature was to him; whether it's claws, so sharp and coated with poison, where reaching out toward him to destroy him with a single swipe. However, when the beast let loose a terrible shriek, leaping at him with the force of a wild tiger, there was no mistaking the motion. With a yelp, Luigi jumped to the left; fast enough to evade the toxin-covered talons, but not to avoid the great, hulking shoulder of the monster itself. With a cry, the green-clad plumber was flung aside harshly, able for one brief moment to feel the coarse fur of the creature against his bare arm.

* * *

BANG!

Mario and Professor Gadd jumped visibly, snapping their eyes toward a table in the corner of the foyer, where all at once, a vase crashed to the floor. It was far from the reach of any of them, and there was nothing visible that could have knocked it over. Simultaneously, at their side, Luigi's body let out a barely audible, pained cry.

"There!'' Gadd's excitement was unevenly balanced with his fear. "The Echo! Luigi's Echo is here; in this very room!"

"How-a come he was-a able to move a solid object?" Mario wondered out loud, protectively reaching out for his brother's arm while staring at the vase now cracked and shattered on the foyer floor. He was trying to keep his priorities straight. He knew he had to focus on finding a way to solve the whole problem, but his thoughts were constantly on Luigi; wondering what would have caused him to shout out, faint as it was.

Gadd rolled his eyes behind his swirled glasses as though the answer were obvious. "He's half in and half out of this dimension, Mario; remember? Like the monster, his soul in the other dimension is fluctuating, as his Echo is also doing. At times his Echo will have solidity."

Mario looked back and forth between Luigi's body and its invisible part, determination once again dominating his expression. "So we need-a to somehow guide-a Luigi's Echo to his body..." His brow creased in thought. "When the Echo hit-a the table, Luigi made a noise, as-a if he had felt it...Maybe his body is-a still partly connected!" If his soul moving about in the other dimension could cause Luigi's body to cry out, perhaps his body's ears could carry sound to his soul. Without waiting to hear what the professor thought of his theory, Mario griped his brother's arms, feeling the complete slack of his Luigi's stance, staring deep into the eyes of that blank and expressionless face. "Luigi! Luigi, can-a you hear me?!...Luigi?!"

* * *

Luigi rubbed the bruise that was forming on his hip with a hiss of pain. He was grateful that the beast had mostly missed him, though he had still been tossed to the side quite violently. But what the green-clad plumber couldn't understand was what he had fallen against. Something hard, and sharp-edged had jabbed into his side, causing him to yell out at the pain. He had been expecting the soft, cold embrace of snow when he fell; not the solid presence of wood. But when he had struggle back to his feet, and looked behind him, even in his hazy vision he could not detect a single thing. There was nothing there.

The monster had overcharged, but quickly turned back around with an angry snarl. "I will KILL you!" It lunged again, but this time Luigi was ready. He ducked and dodged several attacks, staying as far away from the beasts claws as possible. He also tried to avoid the spot where he had hit the invisible, solid object. Whether he was successful is a matter of opinion, since, though he didn't hit that object again, he ran into several others. All the while, Luigi did his best to explain what the professor had done, and that there had been no hostility intended whatsoever. He couldn't remember half the things Gadd had told him and Mario; and he couldn't be sure if the beast would have understood it even if he could remember. And so he followed it with a series of pleas.

 _W-wait!...Please, s-stop!...This is-a all a mi-mistake!...The professor only wanted to-a talk with you! He didn't mean-a any harm!...Please! We don't want-a your world; we have enough-a trouble taking care of our-a own!...I can-a prove it! I can go and-a tell the professor to never do-a it again!_

For whatever reason; whether because of Luigi's words, or just the intense sincerity that resonated within them, the great, dark shape stilled. Luigi was left panting, having just about run out of strength. He had fallen down into the frigid snow at the creature's last lunge, fully expecting his outburst to be his last. The ice crystals bit at his skin, and he couldn't even feel a good portion of his person; numbness having set in. Slowly he realized he wasn't about to die; at least, for the moment. Luigi tried again to blink the blurriness from his eyes, even though he knew it would do very little good.

Though his vision was impeded, Luigi could still sense the beast's reluctance. He could feel a sort of distrust in the air; a suspicion. But it was a start.

 _...Please..._ he tried once more, now that he was certain he had the creature's attention. It was a lot more intelligent than they had thought back in the mansion. Then it had appeared to be nothing but a monster, raging about with only the intention to kill and destroy. Here, in its natural surroundings, it held its own life; full of hopes and fears and emotions, just like any other being... _Please...We're not-a trying to attack-a you...I just- want to get-a back..._

There was a long silence; terribly long, in which Luigi struggled back to his unsteady feet. He was cold, and he was starting to feel very unwell, whether because of his exposure to the elements or something else, he couldn't tell. He waited in that silence; shivering with cold as he awaited his fate.

"Go from mine," the creature growled at last. The pure rumble of it reverberated within the green plumber's chest, though this time a good deal of the hostility was gone. "Leave."

Luigi nearly fainted in relief. He had been almost certain of his doom that time, but, somehow, the creature was willing to spare him. But then Luigi's anxiety returned _...Thank you, but...I do not-a know how to go back...I am-a trapped here...I- AGH!_ All at once he cringed, letting out a strained cry of agony. His legs ceased to hold his weight, and he flopped to his knees in the snow; arms wrapped tightly around his abdomen, as if that would somehow diminish the fiery pain that resided within him. The beast watched in stony silence, until the wave of pain had left, leaving Luigi even more weakened than before.

"Hurt?" it observed. "Hurt, mine...in yours."

Through the tears of pain in his eyes, Luigi tried to look up at the creature. He wished that he could understand it better; its speech seemed far more limited than his own. 'Hurt?' Yes he was hurt. He hurt all over; inside and out. Wasn't that obvious? He was in pain...and he was tired of it. It would be worth it to give up; just to get away from the onslaught of agony and exhaustion that he had thus far been unable to escape. 'Hurt, mine'...What was that suposed to mean? Was it a question? Whether he planned to hurt the creature? No, that didn't seem right. Even if Luigi had wanted to, he doubted he could have faced and defeated such a beast. And the creature must know that. So what could it mean. 'Hurt, mine...in yours'. In yours? In his what? His...world? 'Hurt, mine in yours'. Maybe that was it. The creature had felt a similar pain when it had been on Luigi's side of the dimension.

"Divided," the beast added, as if knowing Luigi's train of thought.

That settled it. Of course, 'like existing on two sides of a closed door at once'; that was what the professor had said. That _had_ to be unhealthy! Luigi was pretty sure one's body wasn't meant for such a unusual stretch across time and space. But what if it got worse? Could it kill him? Providing, of course, that he didn't freeze to death first.

 _I need to get back,_ he repeated, _but I don't-_

 _"Luigi! Luigi, can-a you hear me?!...Luigi?!"_

The voice was weak; hardly there. It sounded even more distant than his own voice, or that of the creature's, but he could just barely percieve it. In fact, he realized that he had been hearing it for quite some time now; just too frightened and distracted to have noticed. Even with the faintness of the sound, Luigi recognized the voice at once.

 _...Mario?_

* * *

 ***A Greenie, for those of you who may not know, is a small, glowing, green ghost that help Professor Gadd in his studies at the mansion.**

 **Hi! Managed to squeak this chapter in before I leave tomorrow for camp. I highly doubt that I'll get another one in before then, so I won't make any promises...though you never know. And I have no idea if I'll have any way to write while at camp. But, again, we'll see. ;)**

 **Thank you for your continued support! It means a lot. :)**


	10. Touch

"...Mario?"

Mario almost jumped out of his skin. His voice had grown hoarse over the last several minutes, as he had called Luigi's name over and over again. It had become almost feverish; the way he just repeated his brother's name, by now not even truly expecting an answer. But that one, small, whispered word that seemed to barely escape the green-clad plumber's lips was, at this point, more than he ever could have hoped for.

"Luigi?!" Mario's eyes locked on his brother's face, despite the fact that it still held no emotion or recognition. He had heard it; he knew this could work. "Luigi, can-a you hear me?!"

There was a painfully long pause, before he received the weakest murmur of an answer. "...Yes..."

The red-clad plumber nearly passed out in relief. It had been a gamble, but it had been worth it to try and reach Luigi. His brother was still at least partially connected to their home dimension; and, as long as that was the case, there was hope. Realizing he was squeezing Luigi's arms a little too tightly, Mario eased up a bit, but did not remove his hands completely. It was like his contact with his brother was the only thing keeping him from falling into panic; into despair. To lose Luigi would have been unbearable. Mario would hold onto him, with every ounce of his physical and emotional strength. Nothing was more important than saving Luigi; even Princess Peach had not earned this kind of full, unwavering devotion. The bond between the brothers was far stronger.

Gadd was in an equal amount of surprise. He had not expected Mario's attempts to bare any fruit. But, of course, the professor didn't understand everything. He was smart, yes; a genius, perhaps; but that didn't mean he had all knowledge and the answers. And if there was one thing he had come to realize through this whole, harrowing experience, it was that. There were things far out of his ability to comprehend. And, as uncomfortable as that made him, it also meant that his work was not over. That he still had room to expand his knowledge, and expertise. To better learn to be wise, rather than foolish; to avoid mistakes like he had been making so recently. Luigi, Mario's dear, kind-hearted brother, was in serious trouble, because of his experiments. He hadn't meant to cause trouble; and he certainly hadn't intended to hurt the younger Mario Brother, but his lack of caution had taken its own course. And now things were very bad indeed. His soul had clenched as he had watched Mario try repeatedly to reach his brother; feeling his sorrow grow with each, unanswered call. But then, just when he had been about to give up all hope, Luigi's small, frightened voice had broken that wall of despair that had been building brick by brick since this adventure had begun.

With a small smile of pained relief, Gadd stepped forward, so that he was directly behind Mario. It was a way of giving the brothers strength; or, at least, he hoped so. His presence could not be as effective as it might have been in the past; but, as of now, it was the only thing he had left to give. Laying a hand gently on Mario's shoulder, he prepared to help his friends through whatever next came their way.

"You were right, Mario," he began. "He is still able to be contacted."

Mario's voice trembled slightly as he spoke. "What-a do we do-a now?"

"Try and guide him...er, I mean, his echo, toward his body. In order for everything to be corrected, the two must be reunited."

The red-clad plumber nodded, still very distracted with his brother's well-being. "Okay...Luigi? Luigi, you are-a trapped in-a both dimensions...The Professor thinks that-a he knows a way to fix-a all this...Do-a you understand?" It felt odd, communicating this way. He felt as if he were speaking to himself, or some inanimate object. Like he should feel embarrassed, even though he knew very well that his brother was, at the least, partially aware of his presence. And Mario was determined to cling to that hope with all he was worth.

* * *

Luigi wasn't sure whether the beast beside him could hear Mario's voice or not; but, judging by the way it too had stilled, seeming to listen, suggested that it could. Which, in all honesty, was a bit of a relief. Mario's voice seemed so distant; so soft and weak, that Luigi had been very uncertain whether he had indeed heard it at all himself. Now that he was certain, he concentrated on his older brother's words, all while trying to deal with the growing discomfort in his body. Things weren't going well, he knew; and he had a feeling that if something wasn't figured out soon, things were going to get a lot worse. Now that he was focusing on it, Mario's voice seemed a little clearer.

" _Luigi? Luigi, you are-a trapped in-a both dimensions...The Professor thinks that-a he knows a way to fix-a this...Do-a you understand?"_

Well, that confirmed the green plumber's suspicions. He was indeed trapped, just as the creature had been, between the two worlds; his home and a land of endless cold and white. Luigi had to fight back down the panic that threatened to arise from this confirmation. His faith in the professor's knowledge had been greatly shaken in the last twenty-four hours; he wasn't sure he wanted to let the scientist try yet another hair-brained idea, one that may end in further disaster. But he had no choice. His only other option would be to stay as he was, suspended within a nightmare of fluctuating worlds.

Luigi clenched his eyes shut as another wave of pain shuttled through him.

From the way things were feeling, Luigi was beginning to think he probably wouldn't live long here, in this ice-encased wasteland. If the cold didn't kill him, the state of his body might. Though he knew nothing of dimensional laws or space time continuum, Luigi was fairly certain that the human body wasn't meant to be exposed to them for long periods of time. Every inch of his being could feel the strain; the stretch of mind, soul, and body. He wouldn't last much longer.

Sending a quick glance at the beast beside him, Luigi did his best to answer back. _Yes, I understand...M-Mario...Please, get-a me b-back..._ He hadn't meant to say that. He wanted his brother to be reassured; but how can one give reassurance when he has none himself? All the pent up fear and pain had leaked out into that small, stuttering sentence; betraying his true feelings.

* * *

Mario's heart sank. He could hear the terror in his brother's whispered words. He could just picture Luigi; frightened and alone. He gripped Luigi's arms just a tad bit tighter. "It's-a alright, Luigi. I'm-a going to get-a you out of-a there...I promise." Promises were not something Mario ever made lightly. His given word was his bond, and that was the most encouragement as any man can give. Turning to the professor, Mario fixed him with a pleading glance. "What-a now?"

"We need to find his echo again," Gadd said gently. "Ask him to move around a bit...Carefully, we need him to run into something, but we don't want him to get hurt."

Mario nodded and repeated the message. After a moment, Luigi's weak, monotone voice broke the silence.

"...Okay...I-I'll...try."

Mario was becoming more and more concerned. Luigi wasn't sounding well at all; in fact, he sounded like he was in pain of some sort. The red-clad plumber braced himself; willing as much confidence into his brother as possible. "You can-a do it, Bro. I'm-a right here beside-a you. I'm-a here."

* * *

Luigi felt the smallest thread of courage spread through him at his brother's words. It filled his aching body, chased away some of the pain, at least for a moment. It gave him the strength to straighten up. He glanced once more up at the huge creature beside him. It had not moved or spoken since before Luigi had first heard Mario's voice. The beast seemed content in just watching him...or sensing him, rather; feeling his presence. It was unnerving, but no hostility remained in its gaze. He had gained its understanding at least, if not fully its trust.

He gave a shuddering sigh, before stumbling forward slightly; slowly. He was still afraid of running into things that he could not see, but, according to Mario, that was the point. Though he didn't understand it, Luigi trusted Mario with his life; of which, as he felt himself begin to weaken even further, the green plumber realized was something that was literally hanging by a thread. After a moment of struggling through the knee-deep snow, Luigi felt his already sore hip brush against something invisible, but solid. With as swift a kick as his freezing body would permit, Luigi shoved his foot into the unseen object.

* * *

Gadd nodded toward the table to his and Mario's left. It was the same one Luigi's echo had run into before. Now it wobbled with a violence that could only mean one thing; the presence of Mario's younger brother. The red-clad plumber fought back a smile, knowing that Luigi was far from safe yet. Giving his brother's arm a gentle squeeze, he continued to encourage him, and began to guide him.

"Good, Luigi; good! Alright...Can-a you walk...three steps-a to your...right?" Mario hesitated, realizing just how difficult this was going to be. He had no idea which direction Luigi was facing. Luigi's right could be Mario's left. Like Gadd had said before, the concepts of up, down, right, and left could be entirely different from one dimension to the next. Mario's spirits sunk even lower as he saw a picture frame further away from him than the table jerk and suddenly fall to the floor. This wasn't going to work.

"N-no; stop, Luigi! I'm-a sorry." He managed to swallow his anxiety. "Please, try to-a make it-a back to where-a you were."

A moment later the table shifted again.

Mario sighed. "Okay...Just, stay-a there for a moment." Turning to Elvin Gadd he gave the professor a look of pure desperation. "If-a he touches me, will he-a be able to feel-a me?"

Gadd blinked uncertainly. "Well, eh...Mario, I'm sorry, but I don't-"

"I'm-a just as-a solid as-a that table!" the red-clad plumber declared, his voice slightly higher than usual with strained tones and obvious fear. Releasing his brother's body, Mario edged toward Luigi's echo. Speaking loudly enough that Luigi would still be able to hear him, Mario stopped just a few paces from the table. "Luigi, if-a you can-a hear me, reach out...try to find-a me!"

Gadd watched nervously; his eyes darting between Luigi's stiff body, Mario's tense stance, and the table, where the echo surely lurked. His more scientific side was weighing the facts; judging Mario's chances of success. His other side was casting the facts aside; only praying that things would work out, whether they followed the laws of science or not.

* * *

Luigi furrowed his brow. Mario wanted him to reach out and...find him? At the moment, trapped in a world where all that stretched before him was a hazed blanket of white and gray, that sentence seemed very unpractical. He could not see his brother; could not even feel his presence...But he trusted Mario. He had faith in his brother that could not even be tainted by the trials he was now facing. Feeling blind, and frightened, and lost; Luigi lifted up a hand, numb and shaking from cold. He reached forward and back, searchingly...until it met with something solid. Something he couldn't see, but knew at once what it was.

* * *

Mario gave a whoop of joy as he felt something clutch onto his hand; before his tone once again grew to concern as the invisible grip tightened almost to the point of being painful. Luigi was scared; had a hold of him, but was scared. Mario's brotherly instincts told him this, and within a heartbeat he had regained his focused concentration. Carefully, as if he believed that if he held his brother's arm too tightly their connection would be broken, Mario closed his fingers over the unseen reach of desperation.

With a whispered, "I've got-a you," the red-clad plumber started to slowly lead Luigi across the room. One step at a time, with pauses in between. For if something bad happened now, all hope; every last shred of it, would be lost.

* * *

Luigi could feel the gentle pull, and struggled to stumble after it. He wasn't sure where Mario was leading him, but he didn't care. He felt a burden lift from his shoulders, the weight disappearing slightly under the reassuring motion of his brother's confident stride.

But Luigi was fading fast. His vision was becoming more and more uncooperative. He wasn't even sure where the beast stood anymore; or even if it still lingered nearby or not. His eyelids were beginning to droop with far more than just exhaustion. His body was shutting down; unable to handle the cold, and the strain of existing in more than one world at once. The pain had gone from bearable to excruciating; finally settling for a mind-numbing throb that resided in his chest, legs, and head.

 _...M-Mario...?_

" _Just a little further, Bro."_

 _...I...I don't think I can-a make i-it..._

 _"Yes-a you can...Just a little further."_

Luigi wasn't so sure. In fact, as he felt his knees beginning to buckle, he knew he wasn't. With a final stumble, he lurched forward as his legs gave out altogether.

* * *

Mario felt his brother's echo suddenly lose strength. He suddenly realized that he was taking too long; that Luigi needed to be rescued now. No later. _Now_. He felt the jolt as Luigi's knees gave out; the pull of his brother's following growing suddenly, and knew he only had a second before his brother would be down. And who knew whether or not anyone, even Mario, would be able to get him up again.

More as a reflex than conscious thought, Mario gave Luigi's arm a hard tug, sending the force of the motion toward Luigi's body. They had been so close; just a few feet away. Mario was not about to let his brother down; not when they were this close.

He couldn't see anything; his brother was only something he could feel, but he felt the sensation of Luigi's echo lurching forward and past him, slamming full force into the physical body before him. Instantly, there was blinding flash; just like there had been before. Mario and Gadd covered their eyes as the offending light shone so brightly, the glare of the sunniest day in the world could never compare. It pierced every nook and cranny; every inch of the foyer was bathed in intense white. Stumbling back, Mario and the professor collectively took a few steps back, wincing against the brightness. Mario, however, tried his best to watch, for fear his brother would need his help.

A portal, identical to the one before, reappeared, directly around Luigi's body. The white light enveloped him, until nothing of him was visible. A frigid cold passed through it, mixing forcefully with the nearly stifling heat of the foyer. Their was a deep rumble, like thunder, before everything quite suddenly came to a halt.

Mario un-shielded his eyes, calling his brother's name as he stumbled forward in a slight daze. His vision cleared just in time to see Luigi slump to the ground, landing on his hands and knees. Mario launched himself forward, dropping to a crouch at his brother's side; laying careful hands on Luigi's trembling back.

The green-clad plumber was terribly pale, and cold to the touch. His clothing was now lightly coated with a layer of fine ice crystals. His hat had tumbled off, and his hair, usually so well covered, was exposed and messy. Luigi's breathing was heavy and ragged, and each inhale seemed a struggle at first; a painful wheeze that made one wonder whether another would follow. His eyes, wide and pained, no longer held that dim glaze; instead, they had regained their life-filled sparkle. His arms were shaking, as he held himself up, for fear of stretching out, unconscious, on the floor.

Mario gently rubbed his brother's back, whispering words of encouragement, until Luigi's heart and breathing had slowed to a safer rate. Mario sent Professor Gadd a grateful and relief-laden smile, motioning for the scientist to come closer, but Gadd shook his head with a sad smile. This was a moment for the brothers to share alone. He would wait. It was his work that had endangered them so; he didn't feel it was his place to join in on their celebration, at least just yet. He would work things out with them later.

And, as he watched Luigi suddenly seem to snap back to reality and grip his brother in a crushing hug, Gadd knew he had made the right decision.

* * *

 **HI! Sorry it has been so long; camp has been very, VERY busy. I literally have to leave in just a matter of minutes, to get back to the camp on time. I hope to finish this story sometime this coming week. I hope. Will probably be the last chapter. :D**

 **Once again, thank you for all your wonderful feedback and support. I already have another Mario story in the works; one that is much longer and hopefully better written. Thanks again!**


	11. Forgiveness and Trust

It might not have been any brighter physically in Evershade Valley the next morning, but somehow, even in that dark and gloomy place, the world had seemed to have become far less black. Sure, darkness and fog still presided over ninety percent of the land, and what was left was shrouded in rain and marsh; but, for some reason, things felt as though the sun where shining. Relief had come. It was like a long, nightmare-filled night had broken into day; broken into calm, warming light. Even though it was only a feeling. For, in reality, nothing had changed. Bats and crows saw no difference. The spirits of the valley saw no difference. But three human beings, who had just survived perhaps the most traumatic night of their lives, embraced it full-heartedly.

Mario had decided to spend the night, seeing as Luigi could barely stand. Their adventures had really taken a toll on the younger brother. His terror alone had worn him down, only adding to his pain caused by his inter-dimensional fluctuation. When his echo had re-merged with his body, and the two dimensions had been restored, Luigi had been in a daze. His vision had still been very hazy, and all color had drained from it; or so it seemed. The room around him had felt as though it were slowly spinning; then rocking side to side. He had slammed his eyes shut, trying to will his own body back to normalcy. After several agonizing moments, his surroundings stilled, and the nausea left him.

The first thing he had become aware of was two, strong hands wrapped around him. Then, as his senses slowly began to return, he realized that he was returning the embrace just as desperately. He could hear his brother's heavily accented Italian mumbling into his shoulder as Mario hugged him fiercely; as if afraid to let go. And Luigi returned it, feelings and all.

It had been obvious to Mario that Luigi was in no shape to leave the Gloomy Mansion without rest. A lot of rest. And when Luigi had suddenly collapsed into, what appeared to be a deep sleep, his mind was made up for him. Gadd had been more than understanding. In fact, the scientist had practically insisted that they spend the night. Together, the two men had eased Luigi up between them; carefully leading the green plumber to the closest bedroom. Mario supposed that, under normal circumstances, Luigi would rather do anything else other than sleep overnight in the old mansion. Far too many frightful memories were connected with the place. Every corner seemed to hold some sort of traumatic mental image or thought; now more than ever. Even Mario had found the idea uncomfortable. His mind had been in overdrive; causing him to cringe at the slightest sound or movement. His senses had been almost painfully sharp, causing his brain to feel light and fiercely attentive.

Gadd had helped settle the younger Mario Brother in bed; overalls and all, since they weren't sure if Luigi would have been able to handle the energy required in getting into any nightclothes. Even if the professor had had something to offer for sleepwear, it had just seemed unnecessary in that case.

Once the job of getting Luigi comfortable had been accomplished as efficiently as possible, Gadd had offered Mario a room directly next door, where the red-clad plumber could rest up as well, but Mario had declined. Setting a chair by his brother's bedside, Mario had eased himself into it; looking quite determined to stick to Luigi all through the long, remaining hours of night.

And Elvin Gadd had not blamed him in the least. The professor found that he too could not bring himself to retire to his usual chamber alone; and so he also chose to stay, though at a respectful distance from the two brothers.

It had been a very long night, but it was finally over; darkness receding slightly to give a dull, rainy morning.

Surprisingly, it was Luigi who awakened first. It was the splitting headache that had done it; along with the restricting soreness in his chest and limbs. He felt as though every villain he and Mario had ever faced had beat the tar out of him, all in the course of a single night. It took him a moment to recall what had happened the day before, but, when he did, it all came flooding back with tremendous force. With a gasp, Luigi snapped back to full consciousness. He instantly regretted it as the room gave a violent turn, not all that unlike it had all the other times before. This time, however, it diminished almost at once. His mind quickly discerned which way was up, and the ceiling slowly came into focus.

Luigi blinked. He was laying in a soft, well-mattressed bed; covered with thick sheets to protect him from the chill in the air. It was warm within them, so he guessed he had been there for quite some while. He shifted his left leg beneath the blanket experimentally, finding that limb to be especially stiff. Luigi nearly panicked when he found that he could not move it, before he realized it was because there was something weighing down upon it. Deciding that that warranted the effort of sitting up, at least a little, Luigi began to force his aching body into a semi-sitting position in the bed.

What he saw both surprised him, and filled him with relief.

Mario, sleeping deeply, sat partially in a chair beside Luigi's bed. Some time during the night he had failed to keep his sleepiness at bay, and had succumbed to a slumped slumber. He had fallen forward, falling against Luigi's leg, which was now trapped beneath the red plumber's upper chest and head. Luigi felt dizzy with relief. He couldn't truly remember his last moments conscious the day before, but he had been very frightened; he remembered that much. And Mario had been his main concern then, and it was again now. Luigi had been terrified for his own safety, but that had paled in comparison to the fear he had had for his older brother. To see Mario not only safe, but asleep, did wonders for the green plumber's soul. With a shuddering sigh, Luigi leaned back against the pillows at his back.

The movement caused the bed to creak, and, with a start, Mario jolted awake. Eyes blurry with sleep, but, even more so, filled with concern, the bright, blue orbs locked on Luigi's weary face. It seemed to take a moment for the older brother to fully realize that Luigi was awake; but then it seemed like Mario was practically inches from his face, trying to check him over. "Luigi! Are-a you alright? Hurt? Can-a you understand-a me?" The questions came thick and fast, and Luigi quickly decided that his headache was not in the mood to be prodded.

Wincing and holding a hand to his head, Luigi gave a weak smile. "I'm-a fine...Just a little...tired." He flinched when he tried to move again. "And-a sore."

"That is to be expected."

Both brothers turned to face Professor Elvin Gadd as the scientist came closer to the bedside. Neither knew just when he had shown up, or awoken, but there were definitely mixed feelings on his arrival. Mario felt a mixture of anger and frustration; maybe even a little distrust. Gadd had made one too many mistakes this time. Mistakes that had very nearly cost them Luigi's life. Now, understand, Mario wasn't refusing to forgive Gadd; far from it. In fact, he had every intention of mending the rift in their friendship...No, not their friendship; that was still there. What was missing was trust. Mario wasn't sure whether he could ever trust the professor as flawlessly as before. He wanted to, but that wasn't up to just him; Gadd would have to earn it back.

Luigi felt an odd sense of relief at their friend's presence. Not a calm, final relief; an uneasy, half-hearted relief. He too felt the chasm of un-trust between them; but, unlike his brother, Luigi also sensed Gadd's feelings of painful regret. It balanced his uneasiness with pity, which resulted in a shaky, but still intact, fragment of trust. And that gave him the power to forgive immediately. True trust would build quickly; perhaps because of the younger Mario Brother's kind heart and almost child-like nature.

Gadd approached slowly; uncertainly. "You've been through a terrible ordeal; one that I am largely to blame for." His voice nearly gave out on him, but he quickly cleared his throat. "Ahem, eh...I feel the need to check you over for any...lasting effects." He came and carefully placed himself on the edge of Luigi's bed. "Now, tell me, my boy; how do you feel? And, please, don't leave out a single detail."

Luigi slowly pushed himself up a little straighter. "I was-a dizzy when I first-a woke up...Headache was-a pretty bad; and-a my chest and-a arms and-a legs are hurting."

Gadd nodded, eyes seeming to have locked with Luigi's own. "And this headache; how bad is it?"

"Not-a so bad now; though it was-a very painful when I first-a opened my eyes."

Gadd seemed happy with that answer. Lifting up a finger, he had the green plumber follow it with his eyes. Satisfied with Luigi's performance, he then lowered his hand and gave a true grin. "Good. Good, that means you'll be alright." Those words should have eased his tension, but, somehow, it just seemed to increase it. Finally, the emotional dam broke.

"I'm so sorry that this all happened," the professor blurted, hurriedly; as though he expected to be interrupted. "I-I made a terrible mistake; I see that now. I should never have tampered with inter-dimensional travel in the first place, and I should have been more mindful of the dangers my experiments might cause. It was wrong of me, and terribly unprofessional. My actions nearly cost you your lives, and nothing should be worth that; not any science or project. I...I don't know what I can possibly do or say that will be able to fix this...but...I'm so, so sorry." He lowered his eyes to the planked floor. "Please, forgive me."

A long silence prolonged his feelings of anxiety; making it feel like an eternity before Luigi answered.

"Professore...You didn't mean-a for this to happen...I believe that...And-a so does Mario." At this Mario sent his brother an uncertain look that conveyed that those words weren't completely true; at least from the older plumber's perspective. "You made a mistake...It-a could have happened-a to anyone." Here Luigi paused, trying to come up with a more encouraging; more sincere response. "But the difference-a between you and-a most people who make-a mistakes, is that-a you did your best-a to fix it. No one can ask-a for a more trust-a-worthy friend-a than that." He gave a weak, but honest, smile. "I forgive-a you."

A weight seemed to lift from Gadd's heart. The professor's eyes flicked nervously to Mario, as if that would give him the deciding factor. Mario met his gaze, still slightly reluctant; but the look of hope and need for forgiveness in Elvin Gadd's face must have been enough to win him over, because, after a moment, Mario smiled and gave a nod of confirmation.

Things were going to be alright. Really alright. The dimensions were safe; the ghosts were back; and everyone was safe and alive.

Things, at long last, were back to normal.

* * *

As Mario and Luigi made their way through the shaded woods of Evershade Valley, the brothers walked in silence. Their goodbyes to the professor had been swift, but heartfelt; they wanting to leave as soon as possible. The Valley still held an awful lot of unpleasant memories; even though warm friendship still thrived within it. All the brothers wanted was to get back to the Mushroom Kingdom. True, there was sure to be yet another crisis there for them to take care of; as there always seemed to be; but at least they'd be on ground they were more familiar with.

Mario sent a glance over his shoulder, back in the direction of the professor's mansion. The fog-laden woods were a little unnerving, especially after his last trip through them. "We'll come-a visit him," he said hurriedly, as though he were adding to a conversation that had been going on for some time. "We'll come and-a see how he's-a fairing...sometime."

Luigi nodded, and the silence continued.

After a long moment, Mario tried again; this time getting right to the point. "Do you think-a he meant it? I mean, do you think-a he meant what-a he said about never trying to reach-a the other dimension?" His voice was hopeful, but it was clear he knew the answer even before Luigi voiced it.

The green-clad plumber sighed and shook his head. And even though he tried to hide it, a smile found a way to his face. Gadd was not one to let his curiosities lie. His questions would grow, as would his inventions and ideas. He _would_ try again...sometime. It wasn't a matter of 'if', it was a matter of 'when'.

But, despite all that had happened, Luigi didn't feel as afraid as he would have thought himself to be. He had a friend; a loyal friend, in the professor; as well as his brother. And a number of others.

As long as he remembered that; as long as that lasted, Luigi knew everything would always turn out alright. Through whatever adventures awaited him and Mario; wherever it would take them, that would never change.

And that filled him with courage that no one could take away.

* * *

 **Finished! Thank you all for the reviews, favs, and follows! It means a whole lot to me. :)**

 **This was a fairly short story, but I have another, far longer Mario story in the works. Hopefully better written, but we'll see. This was a joy to write, and I would like to dedicate it to my little sister; who kept me going and let me read each chapter to her before bed. Sis, you're the best little editor ever. :) Love you!**

 **Thanks everyone!**


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